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These Star People You Will See or. Apr. 1st, at 9 o'clock in tke Evening 



THE STAR PEOPLE 



THE MACMILLAN COMPANY 

NEW YORK • BOSTON • CHICAGO • DALLAS 
ATLANTA • SAN FRANCISCO 

MACMILLAN & CO., Limited 

LONDON • BOMBAY • CALCUTTA 
MELBOURNE 

THE MACMILLAN CO. OF CANADA, Ltd. 

TORONTO 



THE STAR PEOPLE 



BY 

GAYLORD JOHNSON 
u 



WITH DRAWINGS ON SAND AND BLACKBOARD 

BY "UNCLE HENRY AND THE SOCIETY 

OF STAR-GAZERS" 



" Why did not somebody teach me the constellations, and 
make me at home in the starry heavens, which are always 
overhead and which I don't half know to this day? " 

— Thomas Carlyle. 



Stem f nrk 

THE MACMILLAN COMPANY 

1921 

All rights reserved 






. Copyright, 1921 
By THE MACMILLAN COMPANY 



Set up and electrotyped. Published Tune, 1921, 



JUL -6 '21 



©CU614918 



TO 
BABY ANNE 



WHAT HAPPENED IN STARLAND 

PAGE 

First Evening — 

In which the Society of Star Gazers is formed and dis- 
covers Two Bears, one with a stretched tail 1 

Second Evening — 

The Herdsman's Dogs chase Ursa Major and the terrible 
Dragon wriggles away in fright 12 

Third Evening — 

Uncle Henry's magic turns the Lyre into a Ukelele, 
and the Archer's arrow misses the Swan and hits the 
Scorpion 24 

Fourth Evening — 

The Virgin is too busy feeding her Sky Poultry, so 
Cassiopeia gets the Ukelele to play 31 

Fifth Evening — 

In which a Dolphin with an ear for music saves a 
Poet's life — and Uncle Henry puts two birds in one 
poem 41 

First Winter Evening — 

The "Society" learns why Orion needs a club to keep 
Frisky Taurus in order, and why we say "By Jimini! " 
when we're excited < . . . . 52 

Second Winter Evening — 

In which the dogs of Orion and Gemini follow their 
masters, Pegasus escapes as usual, and Andromeda 
vii 



viii WHAT HAPPENED IN STARLAND 

PAGE 

gets a nice soft bed of hay in place of her hard old 
rock 61 

Third Winter Evening — 

The Sky clouded over, but Peter found the Star People 
hiding in the Almanac — Paul found that his head was 
the World — and the "Society" found out about the 
Swastika and the Zodiac, and how you tell when a 
Dipper is a Plough and when it's a Wagon 78 

Fourth Winter Evening — 

In which the "Society" meets the last of the Star 
People and the beginning of Astronomy — and Betty 
proposes a "Note" of thanks 99 



TO HELP YOU FIND 
THE STAR PEOPLE IN THE SKY 

Whenever Uncle Henri/ draws a line to point out one of the star 
people you will find a figure, close to what he says, like this: (10). 

Find the same figure on one of the maps inside the front or back 
cover, and you will see the line that Uncle Henry drew — and find, 
the star person or animal easily in the sky. 

Numbers 1 to 17 can be located on the front cover maps. Numbers 
IS to 82 can be found on the maps inside the back cover. 

To Use the Maps 

Face South and hold the map for the proper season over your 
head — with the top of the book toward the West and the bottom 
toward the East. You will then see the Star People in the same 
places they appear in the sky. 

The maps are drawn for 9 o'clock on April 1st, July 1st, October 
1st, and January 1st, but they will be found serviceable in the 
preceding and following mojith. When necessary consult the maps 
for the season coming before or after. 



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THE STAR PEOPLE 



THE STAR PEOPLE 

FIRST EVENING 

IN WHICH THE SOCIETY OF STAR-GAZERS IS FORMED 

AND DISCOVERS TWO BEARS ONE WITH A 

STRETCHED TAIL 

Uncle Henry sat on the porch of "Seven Oaks" 
Cottage, watching the new moon sink into the woods 
across Sand Lake. 

The ripples of the motor-boat that had carried 
"Sister" and "The Children's Father" away from 
the dock had gone from the glassy water. Over 
across the lake, at Pentecost station, they would 
catch the ten o'clock train, to be gone a week. 

Uncle Henry had urged "Sister" to go. He had 
said he was perfectly sure of being able to look after 
Peter and Paul and Betty for just seven days, but 
now that "Sister" was really gone Uncle Henry felt 
the size of the task he had undertaken. 

Of course he wasn't alone. There was big, whole- 
some Katy, the maid. "Competent Katy," he had 
at once named her to himself on his arrival two weeks 
before. The sleeping, eating, and dressing of twin 
ten-year-old boys and a seven-year-old girl would 
go on as usual without Uncle Henry's assistance. 

In the daytime he planned to take them fishing, 
berry-picking, sailing, and bathing. Target-practice 



2 THE STAR PEOPLE 

with Peter and Paul's air-rifle would help, too, and 
there would be walks in the woods, and up to 
Brighton's farm house for the milk every evening. 

But between supper and bed was a gap that Uncle 
Henry thought might be hard to fill. He must think 
of some games. He didn't want to be a poor com- 
panion for his adored niece and nephews for even 
an hour of the time. 

Uncle Henry blew a cloud from his pipe and 
watched it eddy slowly away, filtering through the 
leaves of the oak-branches at the side of the porch. 
Then he looked up to the vaporous band of the 
milky way. Stars hung in it, sparkling. It was like 
a chiffon streamer with tiny diamond spangles — or 
a cloud of smoke, blown, with sparks, from the pipe 
of Pan. 

You will see right away that Uncle Henry was a 
poet, even if Pan's pipe wasn't the smoking kind. 
It might have been, as easy as not. Uncle Henry 
was wondering whether this last fancy might be 
made into a poem for his college paper, when the 
children's voices floated up from the beach. They 
were sitting on the smooth sand and singing in unison^ 

"Star bright, star-light — 
Many's the star I see tonight. 
Star bright, star-light — 
Tell me, is it true? 

I wish I may, I wish I might 
Get the wish I wish tonight — 
Star bright, star-light, 
Tell me, is it true?" 



FIRST EVENING 3 

Uncle Henry took his feet off the porch-railing 
and allowed his chair to use all of its feet again. 
Then he leaned out by a post and looked straight 
up into the blue-black vault of a moonless July 
night sky. The stars were beautifully clear. 

Evidently Peter, Paul, and Betty were singing 
praise to the fact. They had clapped enthusiastically 
for themselves, and were now beginning the encore — 
a repetition of "Star bright, star-light." 

Uncle Henry's face had become thoughtful, and 
now he stepped down from the porch, and strolled 
down the boards to the dock. There he stood craning 
his neck backward and looking up, until the children 
had once more finished the verse, laughing and 
clapping. Evidently the applause for themselves was 
not enough this time, for there was no encore. 

Peter, his eye on Uncle Henry, flopped down on 
his back and began gazing upward, too. In a mo- 
ment he called, 

"Uncle Hen?" 

"Yes, Pete," from the dock, where Uncle Henry 
was star-gazing in the opposite direction. 

"Why do they call 'the big dipper' the 'great 
bear' — and is there any 'little dipper'? Betty says 
there isn't, 'cause she never saw it." 

Uncle Henry stepped off the dock upon the smooth 
sand, kneeled down, and without answering began 
collecting little smooth pebbles. 

Peter sat up and asked in surprise, 

"Don't you know, Uncle Hen?" 

Surely this genius, who could make new kinds of 



4 THE STAR PEOPLE 

kites, and willow-whistles that "worked fine," was 
not going to fail now. The other children turned 
to him, expectant too. Betty herself was willing to 
be proved wrong about the existence of the "little 
dipper," rather than admit a limit to Uncle Henry's 
wisdom. 

"Let's make a nice, smooth place on the sand," 
said Uncle Henry, his hands now full of those myste- 
rious pebbles. These he put into his pocket and be- 
gan, on all fours, to smooth sand industriously. 

"Come on, youngsters," he invited, "and I'll let 
you settle the questions yourselves. We'll make a 
game of it," he added. 

The trio breathed easier. Uncle Henry did know, 
and was going to tell — in a new, interesting way. 
Three pairs of hands started smoothing sand, with 
some waste of energy, but with rapid results. 

"Now," said Uncle Henry, squatting down before 
the leveled place, and pouring out the pebbles in a 
little pile, "how many stones do you need to make 
the dipper, Pete? We'll draw it on the sand, with 
pebbles for stars." 

Three necks craned upward in unison, and the 
two boys' voices answered, almost together, 

"Seven." 

Betty gazed a moment longer, and said, 

"Eight." 

Uncle Henry looked interested. 

"Where do you see the eighth, Betty?" he asked. 

"Right close where the handle bends," announced 
Betty. 



FIRST EVENING 5 

"Correct," said Uncle Henry, "that shows you 
have good eyes. The Arabs used to call that little 
star 'the proof,' because it is a test of good eyesight 
to see it. The star at the bend of the handle is also 
called 'the horse,' and that faint little star over it 
'the rider.' You can make the dipper itself with 
seven pebbles, though. Go ahead and do it, Peter," 
Uncle Henry finished, "and take good-sized stones, 
to show that they're bright stars." 

When Peter had finished, the smooth patch of 
sand looked like this in the light from Uncle Henry's 
pocket electric torch. 



S8F*' 






Betty insisted upon adding a tiny stone above 
"the horse/' to represent her discovery, "the rider." 

"Now," said Uncle Henry, looking upward, "I'll 
help you this much in finding all of 'the great bear.' 
The handle of the dipper is his tail. Everybody try 
to find the rest of him. Put down a pebble in the 
right spot for every star; big ones for bright ones, 
and little stones for faint ones." 

"Ooh," interrupted Betty, "I got his nose!" 

Here is where Betty put it. 



THE STAR PEOPLE 






" — and his shoulders!" she added in a moment, 
putting them in with small pebbles. 

"I got his front leg!" announced Paul excitedly, 
adding three pebbles rapidly. 

Then the bear looked like this. 



■.*«# 









IV 



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It was Peter who contributed his hind legs and 
his "skeleton," made of finger-drawn lines in the 
sand. Like this. 



FIRST EVENING 



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And when Uncle Henry had drawn an outline in 
the sand with his finger, the "great bear" was done 
to everybody's satisfaction. 




8 THE STAR PEOPLE 

While they were all looking at it, Uncle Henry 
recited, 

" Ursa Major 's Latin — 
And it means, 'the greater bear.' 
Ursa 's 'bear,' and Major 's 'bigger,' 
If you want to see his 'figger,' 
At the dipper's handle stare — 
That's the tail of Ursa Major. 
Find his shoulders, nose, and toes — 
Who first named him, no one knows." 

"Did you say, 'Noah' — or 'no one,' Uncle Henry?" 
asked Betty. 

"I said, 'no one,' but have it 'Noah' if you like," 
said Uncle Henry. "Maybe Noah named him. He 
was interested in animals, and Adam ought not to 
have the only right to name them." 

"Now let's find the little dipper!" urged Peter, 
anxious for a victory over Betty's doubts of its 
existence. 

"When we find it," announced Uncle Henry 
solemnly, "it won't be a dipper at all; it will be an- 
other bear — a little bear. You know that Noah had 
two of everything in his ark." 

"I told you there wasn't any little dipper!" shrilled 
Betty at Peter. 

"Uncle Henry said we'd find it, though," coun- 
tered Peter, looking hopefully at the oracle. 

"So we will," laughed Uncle Henry, "the little 
dipper and the little bear are the same thing!" 

"Come on!" urged Paul, "how do we start, Uncle 
Henry?" 



FIRST EVENING 9 

Uncle Henry got up on his knees and drew a long 
straight line in the sand with his forefinger. (1) It 
went up through both stars in the middle of the great 
bear's body, and a long way beyond. Over three 
times the distance between the two stars the line 
went beyond them. Uncle Henry put down a fair- 
sized pebble at the end. 

"There," he said, "is the tip of the little bear's 
tail. Go ahead and find him; but I warn you — it's 
a very long tail, and you'll have to imagine his legs 
and nose." 

There was a moment's silence. Then Peter said, 

"I can't see any bear, but I can make out a dip- 
per." 

"Make it," said Uncle Henrv. 



&W- ■■?.■•>.•-•• •*■:'/> ■••: ■"■ 




10 



THE STAR PEOPLE 



When Peter finished putting down little pebbles 
the little dipper was very plain, just above the great 
bear's back. 

Then Uncle Henry solemnly drew an outline 
around the seven small pebbles. 




"Oooh, what a funny bear!" laughed Betty, when 
Uncle Henry's finger had finished. "His tail is so 
long!" 

"Bears always have short tails," said Peter, 
looking reproachfully at Uncle Henry, as if that 
person was responsible. There was, however, a note 
of expectancy in Peter's voice. He expected a 
satisfactory explanation from Uncle Henry. 

"This bear once had as short a tail as any other 
bear," said Uncle Henry, quite undisturbed. 

"Who stretched it?" inquired Paul breathlessly. 

"You will note," began Uncle Henry, "that the 



FIRST EVENING 11 

tip of the little bear's tail is a star that is right at the 
top of the North Pole. You can't see the pole, but 
it's there — and long ago somebody tied the tip of 
the little bear's tail fast to it. As the earth turned 
around year after year, and the pole turned with it, 
the little bear was swung round and round by his 
tail. That would make anybody's tail stretch, 
wouldn't it?" 

There was a moment's quiet. Then Peter said 
roguishly, 

"You can't kid us into believing that, Uncle Hen — 
but we'll sure remember it." 

All Uncle Henry said was, 

"Your mother doesn't like you to talk slang, 
Peter." 

Uncle Henry had scored again, and knew it. 

"To-morrow night we'll find the dragon, and the 
man who drives the great bear around the pole, and 
his dogs, and maybe the lions and the swan," prom- 
ised Uncle Henry, as he looked at his watch and 
stood up. 

"Oooh, great!" cried the trio together. 

"We'll have a reg'lar Noah's Ark on that sand, 
won't we?" said Betty. 

"We'll call it ' Noah's Ark in the Sky,' " Uncle 
Henry agreed, as the children followed him up the 
walk to Seven Oaks Cottage. 



SECOND EVENING 

THE HERDSMAN'S DOGS CHASE URSA MAJOR AND 

THE TERRIBLE DRAGON WRIGGLES AWAY IN FRIGHT 

The next evening Peter, Paul, and Betty were all 
down on the beach as soon as supper was over. 

Peter and Paul had that morning made a fence of 
laths around the sand drawings of the two bears — 
big, and little, so that "Rags," their Airedale puppy, 
could not spoil them. 

Now that "Rags" was asleep under the cottage, 
Peter and Paul removed the fence and smoothed 
the sand carefully for several yards around the 
bears, while Betty collected a quite unnecessarily 
large number of pebbles to represent the stars that 
would be found, with Uncle Henry's help, when the 
twilight faded. 

When all this was done the trio sat down beside 
the smoothed space and called to Uncle Henry, on 
the porch, that one star was already out and he had 
better hurry. 

"I'll come when you can see Ursa Major's tail," 
called back Uncle Henry, and the children had to 
wait, although they shrilly announced each new star 
that glowed into sight in the darkening sky, and re- 
peatedly urged Uncle Henry to "come on and begin !" 

The seven stars of the big dipper were all plainly 

12 



SECOND EVENING 



13 



visible when Uncle Henry came down the board 
walk and sat cross-legged on the sand. 

The first thing he did was to extend the line 
joining the last two pebbles in the great bear's tail 
until it was about five times as long as before, and 
curved slightly downward as it went. (2) 

"Now, Betty," he said, "give me a pebble — a 
good big one. This is a bright star w r e'll begin with; 
see if you can find it," and Uncle Henry put down 
the pebble at the end of the line, like this. 




The three exclaimed, "I see it!" almost together. 

"All right, then, we'll find 'Bootes/ the herdsman 
who drives Ursa Major round the pole," said Uncle 
Henry. "He has two dogs to help him besides. 
We'll" find them too." 

The children gazed upward for some time, in- 
tentlv silent. 



14 



THE STAR PEOPLE 



"I guess," observed Betty finally, "that you'll 
have to tell us whether that big star is the bear- 
driver's head — or one of his 'booties,' Uncle Henry." 

A duet of groans from Peter and Paul followed 
this example of the lowest form of wit. 

"I can't see anything that looks like a man the 
least bit," she went on, oblivious of the groans, 
" but I can see a kite, with that big star at the 
place where the tail would be fastened on." 

"Fine," said Uncle Henry, "Make the kite then, 
Betty — and then we'll find the herdsman after we've 
flown the kite a while. That's the wonderful thing 
about Starland. If you get tired of one of the 
beasts or people in it — presto ! You can change him 
into anything he looks like to you. Bootes is really 
much more like a kite than a man, so let's make the 
kite. Put the pebbles down, Betty." 

Betty did, and they looked like this. 




SECOND EVENING 15 

"That was easy!" exclaimed Peter. 

"Never you mind, Mr. Peter!" Betty burst out 
warmly, "I found it first, anyhow!" 

"We'll let Peter find the bear-driver's head," said 
Uncle Henry judicially. 

Peter promptly picked the big star at the tail-end 
of the kite. 

"You're wrong," said Uncle Henry, "but I don't 
blame you. Arcturus is much too bright and beauti- 
ful to be only a big, bright button on the lower edge 
of Bootes' shepherd's kilt — but that is all it is. The 
star at the top end of the kite is his head, and the 
two stars at the ends of the cross-stick of the kite are 
his shoulders. About halfway from them to Arc- 
turus you can find the belt of his kilt, and " 

"Oh, I see his legs!" interrupted Paul. "He's 
running after the big bear." 

"Put them in, Paul," said Uncle Henry. 

Paul did, and the figure 6f Bootes grew to look like 
this. 




16 THE STAR PEOPLE 

"But he hasn't any arms!" said Peter. 

"Yes, he has/' explained Uncle Henry, "his left 
one is up in the air, and his right one holds a shep- 
herd's crook upon his right shoulder. Like this." 

Uncle Henry added pebbles and lines until Bootes 
was finished. 







"What awful short legs he has!" criticised Betty, 

"That must be why he's never caught the great 
bear," smiled Uncle Henry. 

"What's he shaking his fist for?" inquired Paul, 
pointing to the herdsman's left hand. "Is he so mad 
because he can't catch Ursa Major?" 

Uncle Henry did not reply, but drew two long 
lines from the uplifted hand downward to a point 
just below the end of the big bear's tail. 



SECOND EVENING 



17 



"Oh, I know!" piped Betty, and throwing herself 
on her back, she began to star-gaze industriously. 

Peter and Paul looked at each other inquiringly. 

"The dogs!" said Peter. "Betty's looking for 
them. They're on leash of course. Those lines are 
the leashes." 

Uncle Henry smiled his pleasure. 

"The hunting dogs — or, as you would say it in 
Latin, Canes Venatici, are largely imaginary. There 
are six stars — three in each dog, and all faint except 
one, named Cor Caroli" 

"I- see the bright one!" said Peter, and put down 
a fair-sized pebble to represent it. When the 
children had found the five other faint stars and 
Uncle Henry had finished drawing the dogs, Bootes 
and his hunting hounds, Asterion and Chara, looked 
like this. 




18 THE STAR PEOPLE 

"Why do they call the bright star at the tail of 
Chara, Cor Caroli, Uncle Henry?" asked Paul. 

"It is Latin for 'heart of Charles,' ' said Uncle 
Henry, "and the Charles they mean is Charles the 
Second of England, but don't ask me why, for I 
don't know. Perhaps the dog Chara ran away with 
Cor Caroli. I understand that Charles the Second 
lost his heart pretty often, and perhaps one time he 
didn't get it back. Beware, Paul! I am Father 
William out of Alice in Wonderland; 'y° u have 
asked me three questions and that is enough. ' 

"Are you going to make a poem for us to-night, 
too?" inquired Betty hopefully. 

"Let me see," said Uncle Henry thoughtfully. 
"Great bear, Bootes, pronounced Bo-6-tees, and two 
dogs — they ought to make some kind of a poem. 
How's this? I'll let you name it after you've heard 
it." 

"The big bear runs, the herdsman runs, 
His dogs, they both are chasing. 

While Ursa growls, Bootes howls, 
His dogs, they both are barking. 

For Ursa stole Bootes' bowl 
Of hot milk, set acooling. 

His mouth burns yet, the bowl's upset, 
The milky way is streaming." 

"The milky way to catch a bear," suggested Paul, 
as a name for the poem. 



SECOND EVENING 19 

"Who spilt the milk?" volunteered Peter. 

"The herdsman hasn't ever caught Ursa Major," 
said Betty reflectively, "so he's wasting his time 
chasing him. 'Don't cry over spilt milk' would be 
a good title, I think. He ought to be tending his 
silly sheep, if he has any." 

"I've got it!" exclaimed Peter, 'Ursa was a big 
bear; Ursa was a thief.' Like 'Taffy the Welshman,' 
you know." 

Since no one else had a better title, the "Society 
of Star-Gazers," as Paul had named it, let it go at 
that, and allowed Bootes to persist in his pursuit of 
the great bear for his ancient mischief. 

"I thought you were going to show us the lions 
to-night, Uncle Hen," said Peter. 

"So I am, Peter," said Uncle Henry. "Tell me 
what you see just below and between Ursa Major's 
hind feet." 

All the children looked, and Peter answered, 

"Three faint stars, like a triangle." 

"Put them in with pebbles," said Uncle Henry, 
and Peter did. 

"That's one lion; the little one. Now we'll find 
the big one and draw them both." 

Then Uncle Henry drew a long line through the 
two stars at the root of the great bear's tail, and 
extended it to the three little pebbles in a triangle 
under the bear's feet, and through the triangle, and 
beyond as far again. At the end of this line he put 
a large pebble. (3) 

"There," said Uncle Henry, " is the star Regains, 



20 



THE STAR PEOPLE 



which is in the big 
lion's heart. See if 
you can find the rest 
of him." 

Betty soon picked 
out the lion's head, 
and Paul added his 
hind quarters, and 
when Uncle Henry 
had drawn outlines 
around both big 
and little lions they 
looked like this. 





lllliillK 



SECOND EVENING 21 

"Now show us the Swan," urged Peter. 

"Yes, and the Dragon!" reminded Paul. 

"You children haven't forgotten a single one I 
promised," laughed Uncle Henry. "Well, here goes; 
everybody find the dipper again." 

Everybody did. 

"Now draw a line straight up through the middle 
of the dipper's bowl and keep on with it a little over 
three times the length of the dipper's handle. (4) Put 
a large pebble there and see if you can find the star. 
It's in the swan's tail, and he looks as if he was 
flying overhead, with his wings spread, and his long 
neck stretched out ahead of him." 

"Is he sort of like a cross?" inquired Betty after 
a moment. 

"Right," said Uncle Henry. "Put him in with 
pebbles." 

This shows how to find and draw the swan the 
way the children and Uncle Henry did. 




22 THE STAR PEOPLE 

"Now the dragon, Uncle Hen! 9 ' urged Peter. 

"Are you sure," said Uncle Henry, "that you 
promise not to have any bad dreams about the 
dragon if I show him to you before you go to bed?" 

"Sure!" chorused the Society of Star-Gazers . 

"Well," said Uncle Henry, "the dragon is very 
terrible, but he is afraid of bears, so he is squirming 
away as fast as he can from them. He is wriggling 
a little faster too, because Ursa Major is on one side 
of him and Ursa Minor on the other. Draw a line 
through the stars in the tips of the swan's wings, 
back toward the head of the bear-driver, and you'll 
find the dragon's head about halfway. (5) It's a little 
triangle of stars, and from that the dragon's body 
winds around the little bear's body and down above 
the big bear's back." 

"I see all of him!" exclaimed Paul. 

"Here are the pebbles," said Uncle Henry, "put 
the dragon, or Draco, where he belongs." 

Paul did, and Uncle Henry finished him. 

"To-morrow night," said Uncle Henry, "we'll 
find some more of the star people and sky animals. 
They even have musical instruments in this Skyland 
of ours, so we'll find the lyre that the sky ladies 
play on ! One of the sky gentlemen is a great archer, 
too, so we'll find him shooting his bow and arrow 
at a giant scorpion, and " 

"Oh, let's find that now!" pleaded Peter and Paul 
in unison. 

Betty did not join in the chorus. She was asleep, 
with her head in Uncle Henry's lap. 



SECOND EVENING 




"To-morrow night," smiled Uncle Henry. "Betty 
will want to hear, too, about the sky lady's mandolin, 
or harp, or lyre, or whatever it is." 

Then he picked up the little girl without waking 
her, and the boys followed him up the walk into 
"Seven Oaks" — and bed. 



THIRD EVENING 

UNCLE HENRY'S MAGIC TURNS THE LYRE INTO A 

UKELELE AND THE ARCHER'S ARROW MISSES THE 

LOVELY SWAN AND HITS THE HORRID SCORPION 

Betty had been informed by her brothers that 
Uncle Henry had promised, after she fell asleep, to 
show the lyre that the star ladies play when they 
have nothing else to do. 

Since she had a new ukelele herself, and was 
learning to play it, her interest in all stringed in- 
struments was keen, and as soon as the Society of 
Star-Gazers had come together on the beach the next 
evening, she demanded that the lyre be found. 

"All right," said Uncle Henry, "find the swan's 
wing, on the side of him toward the dragon. Get 
that? Well then, look for a very bright star between 
that wing and the swan's neck, and about the length 
of the swan's neck away from the tip of the wing. 
You can't miss it, for it's the brightest star anywhere 
near. Its name is Vega, and some one has called it 
'the arc-light of the sky. ' " (6) 

"I see it!" cried Betty and the boys together. 

"Look for two smaller stars that make a triangle 
with Vega, and then for three more that make a long 
diamond shape. That's right, Peter, put down the 
pebbles and finish the lyre." 

24 



THIRD EVENING 



25 




"It's sort of a harp on a foot!" said Betty in dis- 
appointment. "I want to make a ukelele of it." 

"Sure, easy as breathing," agreed Uncle Henry, 
and promptly rubbed out Lyra from the sand, and 
made it over. 

After all, Betty was the baby and might have her 
own way whenever Uncle Henry had anything to 
say about it. And let no one say that the ancients 
had all the imagination, after seeing the ukelele that 
Uncle Henry made of Lyra. 







26 THE STAR PEOPLE 

"We strive to please," he said as it was finished, 
and Betty clapped her hands. 

"Now we want to see the archer shoot the giant 
scorpion!" demanded Paul, speaking for the mas- 
culine part of the audience. 

"Just a minute," said Uncle Henry, "I'm coming 
to him. You can see one of his arrows if you look on 
the other side of the swan's neck, just opposite to 
Betty's ukelele. The archer shot at the swan and 
missed it." 

"Serves him right for trying to kill the beauti- 
ful swan. I love 'em!' said Betty, with feel- 
ing. 

"You'll need to use very small pebbles," warned 
Uncle Henry, "for Sagitta is rather small and quite 
faint." 

"What's Sagitta?" asked Peter. 

"Latin for 'arrow,' " said Uncle Henry. 

When the arrow was found and drawn, it was in 
this position. 




J 



THIRD EVENING 



27 



"Now the archer!" demanded Paul. 

"All right," said Uncle Henry. "Paul, draw a 
line straight out from the head of the swan, right 
on in the direction he is flying, and go about twice 
the length of the swan's neck." (7) 

Paul did. 

"Now tell me," asked Uncle Henry, "does any- 
body see anything, about there, that looks like a 
bow and arrow?" 

The children searched the sky at a point 
a little over two swan's necks ahead of the 
swan's bill, and 
Peter cried trium- 
phantly, 

"I see it! I 
see it!" 

"Make it then," 
said Uncle Henry, 
"and keep the 
bow in the right 
position to the 
swan's neck." 

When Peter 
had all the peb- 
bles in their right 
positions, Uncle 
Henry drew in 
the archer's body, 
and bow and 
arrow, and they 
looked like this: 





28 THE STAR PEOPLE 

"He's just getting ready to shoot at the scorpion!" 
exclaimed Paul. 

"Yes," said Uncle Henry, "and the other star 
people have to look out too. The people who lived 
long ago called Sagittarius, our archer, "the Bull 
Killer." They did this because when the stars of the 
archer rise in the east, they seem to drive all the 
stars of Taurus, the Bull, over the western edge of 
the world. So they said that Sagittarius killed 
off the Bull. We'll find Taurus next winter." 

"Now let's find the scorpion," urged Peter. 

"Wait a minute!" begged Betty, "I see another 
dipper." 

Peter was impatient. Dippers were not interest- 
ing, compared with giant scorpions. 

"Betty," he remarked, "wouldn't believe there 
was a little dipper a few nights ago, and now she's 
seeing 'em everywhere." 

But Betty had her way as usual, and the Society of 
Star-Gazers paused before passing on to the scorpion. 

"Where do you see the new dipper, Betty?" 
Uncle Henry inquired w T ith interest. 

"It's right back of the leg the archer is kneeling 
on." (8) 

"You're quite right," Uncle Henry agreed, "and 
it's called 'the milk dipper,' because it's right on the 
edge of the milky way." 

"Why that's the bowl Ursa Major tried to get 
Bootes' hot milk out of, and burned his mouth, and 
upset!" explained Betty, with a sudden inspiration. 

"So it is," agreed Uncle Henry, " although I must 



THIRD EVENING 29 

confess I never thought of the milk dipper when I 
made up that rhyme for you youngsters." 

"Now the scorpion!" insisted Peter. 

"Oh, have your old scorpion, then, Mr. Peter!" 
exploded Betty, "I don't want to see the horrid 
thing. I'm going to the cottage and show Katy the 
milk dipper." 

And she went. 

So it was with Peter and Paul alone that Uncle 
Henry found the scorpion that Sagittarius, the 
archer, is always aiming at. (9) It would have been 
easy for Betty to find, for it really looks a good deal 
like a scorpion. See if you don't think so when 
you've found it. 





After Uncle Henry had shown the boys how the 
big, red star, called Antares, in the heart of the 
scorpion, has a reddish color, Peter suggested that 
it was probably red because the Archer had already 
shot an arrow through the scorpion's heart, and 
made it bleed. 



30 THE STAR PEOPLE 

After that, since neither the boys nor Uncle Henry 
ever wanted Betty left out of anything, and since 
they knew she would have stayed if Peter and she 
hadn't wanted different things at the same time, the 
Society of Star-Gazers adjourned until the next 
evening. 

On the porch, however, Uncle Henry made up 
this poem and repeated it to Peter and Paul before 
they went in to bed. 

"The Scorpion's heart has bled, 
Antares-star is red, 
The Archer made an arrow- wound, 
But Scorpio isn't dead. 

The Archer draws his strong-bow, 
To shoot a sharp new arrow. 
I hope he hits the Scorpion, 
And kills the poisonous fellow/' 



FOURTH EVENING 

THE VIRGIN IS TOO BUSY FEEDING HER SKY POULTRY, 
SO CASSIOPEIA GETS THE UKELELE TO PLAY 

Betty, in spite of her pretended lack of curiosity 
about the scorpion, was down on the beach the 
next evening ahead of the other members of the 
Society of Star-Gazers. Uncle Henry found her in 
the twilight, sitting cross-legged before the sand- 
drawing of Scorpio. 

As she searched the southern skv to find the con- 
stellation, she was singing Uncle Henry's verses 
about the archer and Scorpio over and over, to a 
tune of her own improvising. 

The boys had made bows and arrows from green 
saplings during the morning and had raced about for 
some time with "Rags," in search of giant scorpions 
to shoot at. They discovered them in the most 
unexpected objects — trees, rocks, and even boats. 
The hunt had been accompanied by a war chant, 
with the scorpion verses for words. It was a faint 
echo of this that Betty was crooning to herself now. 

As Uncle Henry approached her she looked up at 
him and said, 

"Aren't there any ladies among the star people, 
Uncle Henry? You told about the lyre that they 
play on, but you haven't shown any of them to us." 

31 



32 THE STAR PEOPLE 

"Well, Betty," said Uncle Henry, sitting down 
beside her, "there are several ladies in our star 
country, but only two of them are in our sight in the 
summer time. Let's get the boys and we'll find both 
the ladies and take a vote to decide which of them 
shall have your lyre-ukelele to play on." 

Betty called, in her high little voice, for Peter and 
Paul to hurry, and they raced down from the porch 
with "Rags" in tow. 

"Uncle Hen," asked Peter, '' 'Rags' wants to 
know if there aren't any more dogs in the sky?" 
"Sure," said Uncle Henry, "sky folks are very fond 
of dogs. We've found the two that belong to the 
herdsman. Besides them, there are two others, but 
we can't see them 'til next winter. And, of course, 
there's Cerberus, the ugly, monstrous three-headed 
dog that Hercules killed. We'll find him to-night." 

"Oh, that's great!" said Peter, and he and Paul 
settled down with "Rags" between them. "Rags" 
looked expectantly at Uncle Henry, who said, 

"But first I've promised Betty to find the sky 
ladies that we can see now, and let one of them have 
the ukelele." 

"Rags'" ears dropped and he lost interest. Peter 
and Paul, however, remembering Betty's temper of 
the previous evening, said, 

"Of course, ladies first." - 

"All right," said Uncle Henry, "everybody find 
Arcturus in the hem of Bootes' kilt. Get that? Well, 
then, draw a line in the sand, Betty, from Bootes' 
right shoulder through Arcturus, and extend the line 



FOURTH EVENING 



about as far again. (10) Then look in the sky at that 
point for a bright star. 

"I see it!" cried Betty. The boys picked it out 
next moment. 

"Well," said Uncle Henry , "it doesn't look much like 
an ear of corn, does it? That's what it is, though; an 
ear of corn held in the Virgin's left hand. Its name, 
Spica, means just that. The Virgin is scattering grains 
from the ear of corn with her right hand, to attract the 
birds of Starland — the swan, the eagle, and the dove. 
We'll find the eagle a little later on, but the dove is so 
far south that we never see it well. The boys and 
girls in South America see Noah's dove, but we can't." 

"Now," continued Uncle Henry, "follow along 
northward from Spica to a point just below the big 
lion's tail. There is the Virgin's head. Between 
it and Spica are two fairly bright stars. The one 
nearest Spica is the Virgin's shoulder. Her left arm 
hangs at her side, from the shoulder to Spica, while 
her right arm extends in the direction of the great 
bear's tail. Put 
down the pebbles 
as fast as you find 
the stars, Betty." 
When Betty and 
Uncle Henry had 
finished the Vir- 
gin, or Virgo, as 
she is called in 
Latin, she looked 
like this: 



0*W$ 




<£**&;■ 



34 THE STAR PEOPLE 

Then Uncle Henry added the little half circle of 
small pebbles, with one larger one near the centre, 
shown in the picture just at the left of Bootes. (11) 

"What is that, Uncle Henry?" asked all the 
children at once. 

"Do you see it in the sky?" he asked. 

The children quickly found it. 

"What does it look like, then?" 

Peter thought it was a handful of corn-grains f ^m 
Virgo's hand. 

Betty said, "A necklace." 

"That's nearest right," said Uncle Henry. "It is 
called Corona Borealis, or the Northern Crown. That 
brightest star is named Gemma, so you see it might 
be a gem in a necklace, too. The Virgin looks as if 
she was going to bend over and pick it up. Perhaps 
she will some day." 

"I think," said Paul, " that she's too busy a person 
to give Betty's ukelele to. Who's the other lady?" 

"I quite agree with you," said Uncle Henry. "The 
Virgin seems very much occupied. Well, there is 
another lady in Starland. Her name is Cassiopeia, 
and since she has nothing to do but sit in a chair, 
perhaps Betty will let Cassiopeia have the ukelele 
to play. Virgo won't be jealous, either, because 
she is clear across the sky from Cassiopeia; too far 
away to see. A long line drawn across the sky from 
Spica through the pole star in the little bear's tail- 
tip will reach Cassiopeia. (12) 

"She is easy to find, because she looks just like a 
big letter W. Does anybody see it?" 



FOURTH EVENING 35 

The trio all found the W very quickly. You will, 
too, for it is very conspicuous in the northeastern 
sky in July and August. Uncle Henry showed the 
children that Cassiopeia s W had to be turned 
upside down, into an M, before she could be made to 
sit in her chair properly. 

Here is how Cassiopeia looked: 




"She hasn't a blessed thing to do. We'll give the 
lyre to her," said Betty. 

"I am glad to hear that you are going to give the 
ukelele to Cassiopeia" said Uncle Henry. "Perhaps 
it will make her feel happier. She has had a rather 
sad life. Long ago Cassiopeia was queen of ALthiopia, 
and was very beautiful. But she was so proud of 
her good looks that she boasted herself prettier than 
the lovely sea-nymphs. This made Neptune, the 
god of the sea, so angry that he sent one of his 
worst sea-monsters to make trouble along the shore 
of Cassiopeia's country. 

"And as if that wasn't bad enough, Neptune 



36 THE STAR PEOPLE 

demanded Cassiopeia's daughter Andromeda as a 
sacrifice. 

"So you see it seems good to see Cassiopeia getting 
a little justice done her, if it's only the present of a 
ukelele." 

"Teacher says," piped up Betty, "that the lady's 
statue on top of the Court House is 'Justice.' What 
does she have that little pair of scales in her hand for, 
Uncle Henry?" 

"The scales are to help her in weighing the good 
and bad that people do," explained Uncle Henry, 
"and speaking of scales, there's a pair of them in the 
sky, too. If you will look between the Scorpio and 
the Virgin you will find the scales. (13) They are 
called Libra, which is Latin for 'balance.' There are 
four main stars in Libra, which make an oblong." 

This is how JAbra, the balance, looked when the 
children and Uncle Henry had finished drawing it: 




FOURTH EVENING 37 

"Now," said Peter, with an air of having shown 
great patience, " we want to see that three-headed 
dog. I forgot his name." 

"Cerberus" said Uncle Henry, "But in order to 
find him we'll have to find Hercules, the great strong 
man, for Hercules has Cerberus fast by one of his 
throats and is beating at his three ugly heads with a 
big club. At the same time, Hercules has his left 
foot on the dragon's head, so you see he is kept 
busy." 

"Where do we begin?" asked Paul, impa- 
tiently. 

"Draw a line," said Uncle Henry, "from Vega 
in the ukelele to Gemma in the Northern Crown; 
the Virgin's necklace we found a while ago, you 
know." 

Paul did it. (14) 

"Now," directed Uncle Henry, "look about 
half-way between, and you'll find Hercules' legs. 
His left leg is nearly straight, but his right has 
the knee bent a little. Hercules' legs and the 
sides of his body and his belt make sort of an H 
shape. 

"Oh, I see it!" exclaimed Peter. "Shall I make 
him, Uncle Hen?" ' 

"Sure, go ahead, Pete; and the rest of you watch 
for Hercules' head and arms." 

When the children had put down pebbles to 
represent all the stars in Hercules, and had con- 
nected them with lines in the sand, Hercules looked 
like this : 



THE STAR PEOPLE 




;:: ^>^ 

'9$$!*;': 



"Oh," broke out Betty, excitedly, "he's got the 
ugly dog in his left hand!" 

Then she added the three heads of Cerberus, and 
it was Uncle Henry's turn to draw in the outline of 
Hercules, and complete the picture, like this: 



yRi 




FOURTH EVENING 39 

"You have probably read," said Uncle Henry, 
"about the twelve great labors Hercules performed. 
He had to be very strong to do them, but of course he 
was born that way. They say he even rose up out 
of his cradle and strangled two serpents that the 
goddess Juno sent to destroy him." 

The Society of Star-Gazers became very enthusi- 
astic about Hercules after he was all finished. So 
will you when you see how big and strong and 
beautiful he is, almost straight over your head in the 
summer sky just after dark. You will enjoy him 
more if you lie on your back to look, as the Society of 
Star-Gazers did on the beach. 

While they were all flat on the sand, looking up 
into the great blue-black, star-sprinkled bowl, 
Uncle Henry made up this poem, and recited it 
before the Society adjourned for the night: 

"Hercules the strong man — 
Feel his muscle! 
Feel his muscle! 

Hercules the strong man — 
See him tussle! 
See him tussle ! 

Right hand holds a club — 
I can see; 
I can see. 

Left hand grips a throat — 
One of three; 
One of three. 



40 THE STAR PEOPLE 

Three-head dogs are freaks — 
Queer to us; 
Queer to us. 

That's because you never saw 
Cerberus ; 
Cerberus. 



FIFTH EVENING 

IN WHICH A DOLPHIN WITH AN EAR FOR MUSIC SAVES 

A POET'S LIFE AND UNCLE HENRY PUTS TWO 

BIRDS IN ONE POEM 

During the next day Peter and Paul had seen a 
blue-racer in the grass, and, with Rags' assistance, 
had chased it off into the woods behind the cottage. 

So it was only natural for Peter to ask Uncle Henry 
whether there were any snakes among the star 
creatures. 

Uncle Henry had said, "Two," and promised to 
show the children a very big one, and an old man 
having a struggle with it besides. 

Peter and Paul were expectantly waiting on the 
sand when Uncle Henry and Betty came down from 
the porch that evening after dark. 

"Now," said Peter, "where's the snake, Uncle 
Hen?" 

"We'll begin with his head," said Uncle Henry. 
"Everybody find the northern crown, or Virgo's 
necklace, and Hercules' club. Now look just be- 
tween them and you will see five stars in a sort of 
little cross, quite close together. Get that?" (15) 

The children soon found all five and put down 
little stones to represent them on the sand. 

"All right, then; now trace a line from star to 
star, down toward Scorpio, and then across toward 

41 



42 THE STAR PEOPLE 

the archer, and then up in the direction of the swan. 
That line is the Serpent. It is writhing in the hands 
of Ophiuchus, the old man who is called 'The 
Serpent-bearer.' His head and Hercules' head are 
only a little way apart. Look for a bright star just 
east of the bright one in the head of Hercules and you 
will have the head of Ophiuchus. Then look where his 
shoulders would naturally come and you will see two 
stars close together in each shoulder. Find them?" 

The children did, and placed pebbles for the head 
and shoulders of Ophiuchus. 

"Now," said Uncle Henry, "draw two long lines 
down from the shoulders, through the Serpent and 
beyond, and you will have the old man's body, legs 
and feet. One foot is just in front of the archer's 
bow; the other is just above the red heart of Scorpio. 
You will have to imagine his arms, and his hands 
holding the serpent while it squirms." 

When all the pebbles were down and all the lines 
were drawn, Orphiuchus and the serpent, or Serpens 
in Latin, looked like this: 




Im^Mm 



FIFTH EVENING 43 

"Are there any more snakes, Uncle Hen?" in- 
quired Paul expectantly. 

"Yes, a sea-serpent made of very faint stars," 
said Uncle Henry, "but he is rather hard to trace 
out and the only other creature I have left now 
that is anything like a snake is a dolphin, or por- 
poise, and he isn't much like one. We'll find him, 
anyway, and then if you prefer to make a sea-horse 
out of the dolphin, or Delphinus, as you would say 
in Latin, why go ahead and do it. The animals in 
Starland are very obliging. They will tuin into 
anything you like to see in them. 

"Where is the dolphin, Uncle Henry?" asked 
Betty. 

"Well," said he, "draw a line through the 
beak of the swan and the arrow, or Sagitta, and 
it will strike Delphinus. (16) The arrow is about 
halfway between the swan and the dolphin. 
See it?" 

The children soon found the dolphin and mapped 
his skeleton with pebbles. Then Uncle Henry put 
it to a vote of the Society of Star-Gazers whether 
Delphinus should be finished up as a dolphin or a 
sea-horse. The vote was two to one for the sea- 
horse. 

Uncle Henry drew a sigh of relief; he didn't know 
quite what a dolphin looked like, and he had seen a 
picture of a sea-horse in the dictionary only the day 
before. So Delphinus turned out to look like this. 
If you insist on having him a dolphin, why draw him 
differently yourself: 



44 



THE STAR PEOPLE 





"I wonder," said Betty thoughtfully, "who rides 
the sea-horses. Do the mermaids, Uncle Henry?" 

"I don't know about the mermaids," he answered, 
"but I do know that an ancient poet and musician, 
named Avion, was saved from drowning by riding to 
shore on a dolphin. It was like this: 

"Arion had gone from his home on the island of 
Lesbos to Italy, and while there had made a great 
deal of money by his singing." 

"Just like Caruso in New York," exclaimed Paul. 

"Yes," said Uncle Henry,"and also like Caruso, 
Arion decided to go home for a visit. Well, on the 
way to Lesbos the sailors decided to murder Avion 
and get all the money he was taking home with him. 
He had gone on a regular pirate ship you see. The 
pirates were all ready to kill Avion, but he begged so 
hard to play just one little melody on his lute before 
he died that the pirate sailors said, 'Yes, he might 



FIFTH EVENING 45 

play just one.' You would hardly believe it, but 
the melody that Avion played was so catchy and 
tuneful that it attracted a number of dolphins, who 
began to dance and turn somersaults about the ship. 
Then Avion watched his chance — and jumped over- 
board — and one of the friendly, music-loving dolphins 
carried him back to Lesbos on his back." 

"My, but I'm glad he got away from those awful 
pirates!" cried Betty with heartfelt fervor. 

"It's too bad the horrid sailors got his money after 
all," said Peter. "If they hadn't he might have got 
something nice for the dolphin to eat when he got 
to that place where he lived." 

"The dolphin fared better than that," Uncle 
Henry assured the children. "It pleased the sea 
god Neptune so much to have one of his creatures 
save a poet's life that he had that dolphin put in the 
sky among the stars, and we see him there now as 
the constellation Delphinus." 

"What's next?" demanded Peter when the story 
of Delphinus was finished. 

"The next three," said Uncle Henry, shaking his 
head sadly, "are the last." 

"The last?!!" chorused the Society of Star-Gazers 
incredulously. 

"Well, maybe not absolutely the last," admitted 
Uncle Henry, "but the last for this Summer. There 
is a whole dozen more of the Star People in our 
northern sky, but we can't see them until next 
Winter." 

"Why?" inquired Betty anxiously. 



46 THE S^AR PEOPLE 

"It's a long story," said Uncle Henry. "Some- 
time I'll tell you all of it, beginning with the fact 
that the pole of the earth always points to the 
north star, where the little bear's tail is fastened, 
you remember. I promise to show you all the 
rest of the star animals and people when I 
come home for my Christmas vacation. Will that 
do, if I show you a wonderful eagle to-night — 
and a sea goat and a water carrier to finish up 
with?" 

The children were disappointed, but they trusted 
Uncle Henry. He wouldn't stop showing animals 
and people until he had to; they all knew that. 

Peter said, 

"We'll have a whole dozen to look forward to 
next Christmas. Sort of a present from Uncle 
Henry. Come on, Uncle Hen, let's find the eagle 
and the sea goat and water carrier!" 

The others agreed with Peter. 

"The eagle, or Aquila" said Uncle Henry, "is 
easy to find because of a very bright star, called 
Alt air, which is right in his neck. You will find it 
near the arrow, or Sagitta, between the end of the 
serpent's tail and Delphinus. (17) Does anybody 
see Altair?" 

"I do," said Betty, "it's right between two other 
stars that aren't so bright." 

"Right," said Uncle Henry. "Put down pebbles 
to represent all three, Betty, and we'll find the 
rest of the eagle, or Aquila, as it would be in 
Latin." 



FIFTH EVENING 47 

When the three pebbles were in place they stood 
in this relation to Sagitta and Delphinus: 



s,-! '.VC-jR? 






w*%| 






"Now," said Uncle Henry, "draw a line down- 
ward through the three stars and a little more than 
twice as far again and what do you see?" 

"Another star," said Paul. 

"Put it in," said Uncle Henry, "and then draw 
another line from the upper of the first three stars 
in the direction of the handle of the 'milk dipper ' in 
Sagittarius, the archer. Continue this about four 
times the length of the line that joins the first three 
stars together and you will find two fairly bright stars 
close together. That's right, Paul; put in the star 
you find about halfway down the line, too. Now 
draw a line from the two fairly bright stars back in 
the direction of the tail of the sea-horse, or Delphinus, 
until it almost meets the first line you drew. There 
you will find another fairly bright star. Now it is 
easy to finish the eagle's skeleton. " 



48 



THE STAR PEOPLE 




When the eagle's skeleton was finished Peter 
thought it looked more like a big arrowhead than 
an eagle, but when Uncle Henry had drawn the 
outline of Aquila, the Society of Star-Gazers admitted 
the resemblance to the bird. 

"Now where's that sea goat?" inquired Peter. 

"Follow the line of the first three stars we found 
in Aquila downward, and just a little way beyond 
where it ends in the tip of the eagle's wing you will 
see two rather faint stars, close together. (18) They 
are at one corner of a ' cocked hat ' such as you make 
out of newspaper when you play soldier — sort of a 
Napoleon's hat. It is upside down. When you find 
it and put down pebbles for stars I'll show you 
how the good imaginations the ancient people had 
turned the cocked hat into a sea goat." 

This shows how Capricornus the sea goat looked 



FIFTH EVENING 



49 



when the children and Uncle Henry had finished 
him. I leave it to you to decide whether or not he 
looks more like a cocked hat. 



















"When we have found Capricornus the sea goat," 
said Uncle Henry, " it is easy to find Aquarius or the 
water carrier. Just prolong the line that connects 
the goat's right foot with his tail until it runs close 
to a little triangle of three stars with another in the 
centre. (19) It looks a little like the head of the Ser- 
pent we found squirming in Ophiuchus' hands, but it 
is the water-jar Aquarius is carrying." 

"Oh, I see it," cried Paul. 

The other stars in Aquarius were soon found and 
represented by pebbles. Then Uncle Henry drew 



50 



THE STAR PEOPLE 



the outline that finished the Water-Carrier, like 
this: 













"Now we're all through?" inquired Betty. 

"Until next Christmas," smiled back Uncle Henry. 

"Can't we have just one more poem?" teased 
Paul. 

"What shall it be about?" asked Uncle Henry, 
with the air of a man who could write a poem to 
order on any subject. 

"One about the lovely swan," commanded Betty, 
"you haven't made one up about the swan." 

Uncle Henry was in a quandary; he wanted to 
please everybody with the last poem. He lay down 
on his back and looked up at the sky for so long that 
the children thought he must have fallen asleep. 



FIFTH EVENING 51 

Finally Uncle Henry began to recite, 

"The eagle of Starland 
Got tired of his tree, 
And challenged the swan to a race. 

" Come up from the water! 
Fly up and be free! 
To northward I'll beat you a chase.' 

The swan thought of shivers 

And icebergs and frost — 

He made up his mind to race South. 

So they are still flying — 

Their race can't be lost — 

Till Gabriel blows with his mouth." 

"What'll Gabriel blow?" inquired Peter when the 
hand-clapping had stopped. 

"His trumpet, of course, silly!" answered Betty 
for Uncle Henry. 

Just then the children heard a toot from an 
automobile horn that they all recognized, and the 
Society of Star-Gazers raced with Uncle Henry 
back up to "Seven Oaks Cottage." 

"Sister" and "the Children's Father" had come 
back from their trip and had surprised everybody. 

The summer sessions of the Society were over. 



FIRST WINTER EVENING 

THE "SOCIETY" LEARNS WHY ORION NEEDS A CLUB 

TO KEEP FRISKY TAURUS IN ORDER AND WHY WE 

SAY "BY JIMINl!" WHEN WE GET EXCITED 

Uncle Henry came, as he had promised, to spend 
his Christmas holidays with "Sister," "the Children's 
Father," Peter, Paul and Betty, in their city apart- 
ment. 

The children's hope for fair weather in Christmas 
week was not disappointed either. The days were 
snowy and sunny and the nights frosty and clear. 

Only one thing had worried the "Society of Star- 
Gazers" — what was to take the place of the smooth 
sand of the beach when Uncle Henry should begin to 
point out the sky people that were visible in the win- 
ter sky? There were pebbles, it was true, on the flat 
roof of the apartment house, but there was no sand. 

The children were certain, however, that Uncle 
Henry would find a way, as he always did, and sure 
enough, when he arrived he brought, as one of his 
Christmas gifts to the children, a wonderful black- 
board, an easel to stand it upon, and plenty of white 
chalk. 

After dinner on the first night of Uncle Henrv's 
visit, the Society of Star-Gazers was bundled up in 
warm coats and mufflers and he led the way to the 

52 



FIRST WINTER EVENING 



53 



roof, carrying the blackboard and his pocket electric 
flashlight. 

Far above the lights of the city arched the great, 
blue-black bowl of the sky, filled with the sparkling 
patterns of stars that the children had learned to 
know as steadfast, unchanging friends. 

"Uncle Henry," said Betty, "you've told us about 
enough animals to really fill a Noah's ark, but we've 
never heard anything about Noah himself. Isn't 
there any Mr. Noah in the sky?" 

"Well, Betty," said Uncle Henry, "There isn't 
any constellation that's named for Noah, but he 
was a great hunter, and since there is a great hunter 
in the sky, we can call him Noah if we want to, even 
if his last name is Orion." 

"Noah O'Ryan!" laughed Paul. "I know a boy 
named Michael O'Ryan." 

"It's not the same spelling," said Uncle Henry, as 
he turned the flashlight on the blackboard while he 
wrote the word upon 
it, and underneath, 
made three large 
chalk dots, like this : 

"Find those three 
stars," said Uncle 
Henry, "and you 
will have the belt of 
Orion. It ought not 
to be hard to find 
them, for there are 
no other stars like 




54 



THE STAR PEOPLE 



them anywhere in the whole sky. Those three 
stars have always attracted a lot of attention from 
people in all times and countries. In the Bible Job 
calls them 'the bands of Orion'; the Arabs called 
them 'the Golden Nuts'; the fierce Masai Tribe in 
Africa call them 'the three old men'; the ancient 
Chinese named Orion 'Tsan, 'which means 'three'; 
and to the Eskimos these three stars appear to be 
the three steps that a Starland Eskimo cuts in a 
snowbank when he wants to climb to the top of it." 
The children soon found Orion s belt about a third 
of the way up the southeastern sky. 

"Now," said Uncle Henry, "see who can find his 

shoulders first. Here is a piece of chalk for each of 

you. Put the shoulders in as soon as you see them." 

Paul found Orion s right shoulder, and Betty his 

left, and made large 
chalk dots to show 
how bright and 
beautiful the stars 
that mark the shoul- 
ders are. 

"Oh, I see his 
feet ! " exclaimed 
Betty delightedly. 

"Put them in 
then," said Uncle 
Henry. 

Then Orion looked 
like this on the 
blackboard : 




FIRST WINTER EVENING 55 

"I'll tell you this much more," said Uncle Henry, 
"and then you must finish Orion by yourselves. He 
has a great club, raised, ready to strike, in his right 
hand, and he holds a lion's skin on his left arm, as a 
shield." 

"What's he going to hit at?" inquired Peter, with 
his boy's joy in battle uppermost. 

"At Taurus, the wild bull," said Uncle Henry. 
"You see that Taurus is very fierce, and would enjoy 
nothing better than to chase the twin star boys 
round and round the sky. He might not really want 
to hurt the boys, whose names are Castor and Pollux, 
but Taurus 9 horns are very sharp and he doesn't 
know how to play gently, so it keeps Orion pretty 
busy getting between him and Gemini and threaten- 
ing the bull with his club." 

"What's ' jimini,' Uncle Hen?" said Paul. "Sounds 
like our swear word." 

"It is the origin of it," said Uncle Henry. "The 
ancient Romans used to swear 'by Gemini,' and it 
has slowly been changed into your 'jimini.' Gemini 
is the Latin word that means 'twins.' We'll find 
them after we finish up Orion and Taurus, and then 
you'll see just how Orion keeps protecting them from 
the bull." 

"Hurry up, Uncle Hen!" urged Peter. "I'm 
dreadful excited!" 

Uncle Henry did, and as a result Orion looked like 
this: 



56 THE STAR PEOPLE 




FIRST WINTER EVENING 51 

"Ooh! he's got a sword, too!" cried Paul, as Uncle 
Henry added the three tiny stars below Orion s belt, 
and drew the outline around them. 

"Why didn't he use the sword on Taurus?" asked 
Peter. 

"Because he knew Taurus was only playing in his 
rough way," Uncle Henry replied. 

"Well, we've heard a lot about that bull," said 
Betty. "Let's find him right away." 

Uncle Henry said nothing, but took the chalk from 
Betty and drew a light line from Orion s right foot 
to his left shoulder, and continued it upward about 
the same distance. (20) 

"There," he said, "that point is just between the 
bull's horns and over his right eye. The right eye 
of Taurus is a very bright star called Aldebaran. 
Anybody see it?" 

"Oh, I do!" said Paul. "What, hasn't Taurus 
any left eye, Uncle Hen?" 

"He has," said Uncle Henry, "but he has it closed 
just now. He's winking it at Orion as much as to 
say, 'Oh, I act fierce, but I wouldn't hurt those 
twins after all. I'm just playing.' Go ahead and 
put in the stars for the bull's head and horns as fast 
as you find them, youngsters." 

The children did, and when Uncle Henry had 
showed them the fore legs and shoulder, which con- 
tains the beautiful little group of faint stars called 
the Pleiades, Taurus looked like this : 



58 



THE STAR PEOPLE 




"Now we want the twins!" cried Betty. 

"All right," said Uncle Henry, "follow a line 
straight up the bull's left horn and a little more than 
the length of the horn beyond its tip and you will 
reach Castor, the head of the fainter twin." (21) 

Peter and Paul began to show great interest, be- 
cause they were twins themselves. They demanded 
that each be allowed to select one of the sky children 
and finish him completely, without Uncle Henry's 
assistance. 



FIRST WINTER EVENING 59 




60 THE STAR PEOPLE 

Paul, having first choice because he was twenty 
minutes younger than Peter, selected Pollux, and 
Peter had to be contented with the less bright Castor. 

It was not a difficult task for either of the boys, 
after finding the twin star Castor, for the head of 
Pollux is quite close beside it and the bodies of both 
star children stand side by side, with the feet just 
above Orion s uplifted club. 

When Gemini, the twins, were finished, the black- 
board looked like this, and since the children's 
fingers were so stiff with the cold that they could 
hardly hold the chalk, Uncle Henry moved that 
the Society of Star-Gazers adjourn until the next 
evening. 



SECOND WINTER EVENING 

IN WHICH THE DOGS OF ORION AND GEMINI FOLLOW 
THEIR MASTERS, PEGASUS ESCAPES AS USUAL, AND 
ANDROMEDA GETS A NICE SOFT BED OF HAY IN 
PLACE OF HER HARD OLD ROCK 

"Uncle Hen," said Peter, when the Society was 
assembled round the blackboard, in overcoats and 
mittens, on the following night, "what is that very 
bright star that is down behind Orion? It looks sort 
of important to me." 

"Right you are, Pete," answered Uncle Henry, 
looking where the boy pointed, "it is important. It 
is the star Sirius, the brightest star in the whole 
sky. We'll begin with it and find Orion s dog, or 
Canis Major, which is Latin for 'bigger dog." 

"That's great!" exclaimed Paul, "you told us last 
Summer that we'd find him this Christmas-time." 

"So I did," agreed Uncle Henry. "Well, you can 
always find Orion s dog by drawing a line through 
Orion's belt and extending it behind him until it 
meets Sirius. (22) You can't miss it because it's so 
bright. Everybody see it?" 

Everybody did. 

"Now," went on Uncle Henry, "extend the line 
that came from Orion s belt, curving it slightly 
downward after it passes through Sirius, and you 
will have the dog's backbone. Put in the chalk 

61 



62 



THE STAR PEOPLE 



dots as we find the stars, Pete. Now draw lines 
upward and downward from Sirius, at right angles 
to the backbone line and you will have the dog's 
forelegs and ears. At a point on the backbone about 
twice the length of the foreleg from Sirius, you will 
find another fairly bright star, and below it a little 
way another star. Connect these two and keep on 
with the line, at right angles to the backbone, and 
you will find one hind foot. The other is not far 
in front of it. Yes, that's right, Betty, there's a star 
in the tip of his tail, too. And the three stars near 
Sirius make Canis Major's nose." 

The children soon finished the skeleton and Uncle 
Henry took the chalk and put the flesh upon it. 
Then the dog of Orion looked like this: 




"He's a faithful old fellow, isn't he?" said Betty, 
6 to always follow Mr. Orion around like that?" 
"I'm not always sure," said Uncle Henry, 



SECOND WINTER EVENING 63 

"whether the dog of Orion would always be so 
faithful if it wasn't for the rabbit that is always 
just ahead of him, almost under Orion s feet." 

"Oh, show us the rabbit!" cried Betty. Her 
father had promised her that when they all went to 
live in a house in the country, she should have a 
pair of them for her very own. 

"All right, Betty," said Uncle Henry. "You can 
find Lepus, the rabbit, yourself. The three rather 
faint stars just below Orion s right foot make the 
curve of his back. Join them together with a curved 
line and extend it forward and downward until it 
passes through two brighter stars. The lowest of 
these is in the fore-shoulder of the rabbit. Now 
draw lines backward from both of these brighter 
stars, at about right angles to the line that joins them, 
and you will find the rabbit's hind hip and hind 
foot. He is lying dow T n for a moment to rest. You 
see he's been galloping away from Canis Major for 
such a long time that he is tired." 

"Poor little rabbit!" cried Betty, and her little 
face looked so pitiful in the light of the electric torch 
that Uncle Henry hastened to reassure her by saying 
that the big dog had never yet caught the rabbit, and 
by the very nature of things never could. Then she 
took heart to go on putting in the stars. 

"Now," said Uncle Henry, "you can find the star 
in the rabbit's eye by drawing a line forward from 
the upper one of the brighter stars, and the star in 
his fore-foot by drawing another forward and down- 
ward from his fore-shoulder. That finishes his 



64 



THE STAR PEOPLE 



skeleton, all except his ears. They are made by 
finding four faint stars just under Orion's left foot, 
and using two of them in each ear." 

"Now can I draw his outline in, too?" asked 
Betty. "I want to make every bit of him myself." 

"Of course you can!" exclaimed Uncle Henry 
indulgently. 

"You've got to let me make all of the horse, then, 
when we come to him!" exclaimed Peter. 

"In just a little while, Pete," said Uncle Henry, 
"we're making the rabbit now." 

"All right," agreed Peter. 

"Betty had looked longingly at rabbits in pet 
stores so often that she really did very well at draw- 
ing the outline of the sky-rabbit. 

We leave it to you to better it. You can't — unless 
you love rabbits more than she did. 




SECOND WINTER EVENING 65 

Betty's brothers were quite astonished, and pleased 
the little girl immensely by clapping their hands 
when the rabbit was finished. 

"Now let me do the horse!" demanded Peter. 

"WhatTl be left for me to do?" inquired Paul 
wistfully, "if you let Pete do the horse?" 

"That'll be all right, Paul," reassured Uncle 
Henry, "the sky horse is very large, but we'll give 
you two smaller animals to do yourself to make up 
for him — Aries, the ram, and Canis Minor, the 
smaller dog." 

"Fine," agreed Paul. "I know all 'bout rams." 

The children laughed gleefully. Paul had been 
butted over once by a ram when they w^ere on a 
summer visit to their grandfather's farm. 

"Well, Pete," said Uncle Henry briskly, "you'll 
find Pegasus, the horse, grazing clear on the other 
side of the star field. Somebody built a box stall 
for him over there, but he's so big and strong that 
he doesn't stay in it except when he feels like it. He's 
all the time leaping the fence and escaping. When 
you find him, you'll see that he's doing that very 
thing now. In fact, you'll catch him right in the act ! " 

"Oh, let's hurry then!" said Peter, "he might 
be out before we see him do it!" 

"Everybody find the big dipper," directed Uncle 
Henry. "You remember how we found the pole star 
in the tip of the little bear's tail by drawing a line 
lip through the 'pointer stars' of the dipper's bowl, 
on the side away from the handle? Well, do that 
again now, and follow the line through the pole star, 



66 THE STAR PEOPLE 

passing behind Cassiopeia in her chair, and con- 
tinuing until your line passes through two fairly 
bright stars quite a distance apart. (23) A line con- 
necting these stars marks the top edge of Pegasus 9 
box stall, which is called 'the square of Pegasus.' 99 

"Cassiopeia is about halfway between the pole 
star and Pegasus. A line drawn from the pole star 
through the back of Cassiopeia's chair will reach the 
two stars that form the lower corners of Pegasus 9 
box stall." (24) 

"Oh, I see the square now," said Peter. 

"Me, too," said Paul. 

"It's very big, isn't it?" said Betty. 

"Yes," agreed Uncle Henry, "and Pegasus is big, 
too. He is upside down just now, with his head just 
above the western horizon. His nose points north- 
ward toward Delphinus and his neck curves up 
from the side of the box stall that's away from the 
pole star. His fore feet curve up from the side of the 
square that is toward the pole star, and both feet 
point toward the swan." 

"I see him now," cried Peter, and began putting 
in the chalk dots and lines for the framework of the 
box stall and the skeleton of Pegasus 9 head and fore- 
legs, which are all of him that can be seen. As Uncle 
Henry said, Pegasus is just in the act of jumping out 
of his stall. 

When Peter had finished drawing Pegasus, the 
horse of poets looked like this. Uncle Henry put in 
the arrows pointing from the pole star, and the 
skeletons of Delphinus and the swan. 



SECOND WINTER EVENING 



67 




68 THE STAR PEOPLE 

"It seems to me," observed Paul sagely, "that 
Pegasus 9 box stall is a lot too small for him." 

"That's why he is all the time jumping out and 
running away," explained Uncle Henry. "I told 
you that we should catch him in the act. He's 
always at it." 

"Pete's had his turn; now I want to find the ram 
and the little dog," said Paul. 

"If you'll wait just a little longer," said Uncle 
Henry, "I'd like to show Betty the last of the sky 
ladies, because she's right close to Pegasus.' 9 

Paul's face fell a little, but he said, "Ladies first, 
of course," as any gentleman would. 

"I said she was a lady," said Uncle Henry, "but 
I'm not so sure that she is acting like one. In fact, 
she is in an attitude that few ladies would like to be 
seen in, at least not in the plain view of everybody 
who looks at the sky." 

"What's she doing, Uncle Henry?" inquired 
Betty, in a tone that said, "I guess it can't be any- 
thing so very bad." 

Betty was herself fond of climbing trees, in 
spite of motherly disapproval of such tomboy 
activities. 

"She's lying flat on her back, with her arms and 
legs sprawled out and her head resting against the 
corner of Pegasus 9 box stall. I should think it might 
be very uncomfortable for her, unless she is lying 
on a pile of hay, for Andromeda has been there a 
very long time in the same position. The ancient 
Greeks said that Andromeda was chained to a 



SECOND WINTER EVENING 69 

rock. Let's not have her that way; it would be so 
disagreeable." 

"She's probably asleep and doesn't notice, but 
we'll give her the hay," said Betty. "There's 
nobody to tell her not to lie down where she likes. 
How do we find her, Uncle Henry?" 

"First look for her head," said Uncle Henry. "It 
is the same star we found forming the lower corner 
of Pegasus' square on the side toward the pole star. 
Andromeda s feet are just below the W-shaped 
Cassiopeia. A line drawn from the swan's beak 
through his tail, and extended across the sky, will 
reach the stars in the feet. (25) Another line drawn 
diagonally across the square of Pegasus to Androm- 
eda s head and extended will pass along her body, 
and farther on, her left foot will be seen just above 
the line. You see her now, don't you, Betty?" 

"Yes," said Betty, "and I think I see her 
arms." 

"All right, draw her in," Uncle Henry en- 
couraged. 

Betty did, but didn't think she could draw well 
enough to outline the sleeping girl, so Uncle Henry 
did that. Then Andromeda looked like this : 



70 



THE STAR PEOPLE 




SECOND WINTER EVENING 71 

Betty added a few lines to show that Andromeda 
was lying on a pile of hay, instead of being chained 
to that hard rock the Greeks insisted upon. 

"What is that fuzzy little star just to her right, 
about at her hip?" asked Paul. 

"I'm glad you noticed that," said Uncle Henry. 
"The astronomers who lived ever so long ago, long 
before the birth of Christ Jesus, noticed that it looked 
' fuzzy,' just as you have, and called it 'the little 
cloud.' It is now called 'The Great Nebula in 
Andromeda. 9 If you looked at it through a telescope 
you would see that it is not one star, but a great 
many. Some of them, as astronomers who live now 
tell us, are as large as our sun." 

"Ooh, how wonderful!" said Betty softly, and the 
boys' faces showed that they thought so, too. 

"Some night," promised Uncle Henry, "we'll 
bring up a little telescope and look at 'the little 
cloud' again. It is a fine sight." 

"Now," said Paul after a moment, "please can 
I find the ram and the little dog?" 

"Certainly," said Uncle Henry. "Just as Canis 
Major, the bigger dog, follows Orion and belongs to 
him, so Canis Minor, the littler dog, follows and be- 
longs to the star children, the twins named Gemini." 

"Ooh!" exclaimed Betty, "just like 'Rags' be- 
longs to Peter and Paul! We'll call the little dog 
'Rags' when Paul finds him." 

."Fine!" laughed Uncle Henry, "but I warn you 
that he won't come when you call him as well as the 
real live 'Rags' answers to his name." 



72 THE STAR PEOPLE 

"Where do I start?" inquired Paul, anxious to 
have his chance to draw. 

"At the feet of the twins," directed Uncle Henry. 
"Draw a line through their feet and extend it away 
from the feet of Pollux, in the direction away from 
Taurus, the bull. (26) At a point about as far away 
from the foot of Pollux as the height of the twins you 
will find a bright star, and between it and the foot of 
Pollux a fainter one. Draw a line to connect them, 
and you have the little dog's backbone. You can 
fill in the rest of him any way you like, for those are 
the only two stars he has in him. I'll tell you one 
thing, though. The brighter star is at the little 
dog's tail instead of his head. The opposite was the 
case with Orion s dog." 

The children found the two stars very easily and 
Paul put down dots of the right size to represent them. 
Then he drew the outline of the little sky dog, making 
him an Airedale, as you can see, so that he might be the 
same as his beloved flesh and blood name-sake "Rags." 




"Now that we've found the two dogs, that makes 
it easy to find Cancer the Crab," said Uncle Henry. 



SECOND WINTER EVENING 



73 



"Just draw a line from Sirius, in the Big Dog, 
through the Little Dog, and extend it almost as far 
again. (27) That's right. Now what do you see?" 

The children searched the sky for some time, and 
Betty finally said, "Sort of a sprawly bunch of six 
or eight rather faint stars." 

"Make little chalk-dots for them, then, Betty, and 
we'll try our best to make them look like a crab." 

This shows how Cancer the crab looked when he 
was finished on the blackboard, and how he crawls 
in the sky away from Canis Major and Gemini, the 
twin boys. Perhaps he has learned by experience to 
leave boys and dogs as far behind as possible. 




74 THE STAR PEOPLE 

"Now let's find the ram!" said Paul. "I want to 
draw him." 

"The ram," said Uncle Henry, "is very small, and 
is made of only three stars. A line drawn from the 
top corner of Pegasus' box stall, on the side next 
the pole, going straight down the side, and extended 
below it one and a half times the height of the stall, 
will point to the ram. (28) You can also locate 
Aries, the Ram, by drawing a line from the star 
in the swan's tail, across the stars in Andromeda's 
hips, and beyond them a little more than the dis- 
tance from her head to her hips. Don't mistake a 
little triangle of stars that you will see just below 
Andromeda's left leg for the three stars of Aries. 
Aries is a triangle, also, but it has two fairly bright 
stars, while the triangle has only one. Do you all see 
Aries, the Ram?" 

The children had all found it after a few moments, 
as well as the triangle under Andromeda's feet. When 
Paul had made the chalk dots and lines for Aries' 
skeleton, Uncle Henry drew the outline around them 
and the ram looked like this. You will see that in 
order to show Aries right side up, the blackboard 
had to be turned so that Andromeda was upside down. 

"While we are in the neighborhood of Pegasus and 
Andromeda and Aries the Ram we may as well find 
the two fishes. One of them, called the Northern 
Fish, lies just about halfway between Andromeda's 
body and Aries — and the other, called the Western 
Fish, lies just back of Pegasus' box stall, quite close 
to the water jar of Aquarius. (29) 



SECOND WINTER EVENING 



75 





~^^ 




/^~ 


^y^j/i 


1 


• 






I 


//v 




1 ; 


• 

1 


1 

\ 

Box-Sfa// 
of 


TTTTlUl 


1 

1 


4- y\\\\ "'\ 



"The two fishes are tied together by their tails. 
The cord or ribbon runs eastward from the tail of 
the Western Fish, running about parallel to the side 
of Pegasus' stall, and then makes a sharp angle, 
coming back toward Andromeda, where it is fastened 
to the Northern Fish's tail." 

When Pisces, or "The Fishes" were found and 
drawn with chalk they were in this relation to 
Pegasus, Andromeda, Aries, and Aquarius' Jar. 



76 



THE STAR PEOPLE 




SECOND WINTER EVENING 77 

"While I think of it," said Uncle Henry, "I want 
to tell you that sometimes you may find a very 
bright star in a constellation where it doesn't seem 
to belong. If you watch it for a few nights you will 
see that it moves. It isn't a star at all, but a planet 
or "wanderer." Sometime I'll show you how to 
know all the planets by sight and name. You will 
never see them except in the zodiac constellations, so 
they need not confuse you. And now I think all of 
us had better go downstairs and get warm before we 
go to bed. Besides, we want to leave a little to do 
to-morrow night, and there are only two constella- 
tions left now." 

"Only two?" cried the children in disappoint- 
ment. 

"Only two that we can see well," assured Uncle 
Henry.. 

"Well," said Peter, "I guess we'd better have the 
Society adjourn. I move we adjourn." 

"Second the motion," said Paul, with true parlia- 
mentary solemnity. 

"Carried," murmured Betty, who was beginning 
to get sleepy in spite of herself. 



THIRD WINTER EVENING 

THE SKY CLOUDED OVER, BUT PETER FOUND THE 

STAR PEOPLE HIDING IN THE ALMANAC PAUL 

FOUND HIS HEAD WAS THE WORLD AND THE 

"society" FOUND OUT ABOUT THE SWASTIKA AND 
THE ZODIAC, AND HOW YOU TELL WHEN A DIPPER IS 
A PLOUGH AND WHEN It's A WAGON 

Next evening Peter and Paul carried the black- 
board to the roof after supper, but soon returned in 
disappointment. The sky had all clouded over! The 
evening's session of the "Society of Star-Gazers" 
was spoiled. Its members stood in a circle about 
Uncle Henry and looked hopefully at him. Never 
yet had be failed to make good in an emergency. 

"Well, it can't be helped," said Uncle Henry 
cheerfully. "We'll just have to bring Starland down 
here into our playroom for this evening. Suppose 
you get me — let's see — about a dozen sheets of paper 
from a big scratch pad, some of Betty's colored 
crayons — they had better be the dark-colored ones — 
and a good-sized sheet of stiff cardboard or Bristol 
board. Yes, and some pins and an Almanac. Betty '11 
get the colored pencils, Paul the cardboard, and 
Peter the sheets of paper and the pins. I'll borrow 
the Almanac from Katy. She has one in the 
kitchen." 

The children scattered for the materials and Uncle 

78 



THIRD WINTER EVENING 79 

Henry took the shade off the electric lamp that stood 
on the playroom table. 

When everybody was back in the playroom with 
the things needed the Society gathered around 
Uncle Henry and asked, 

"Where do we go from here, Uncle Hen?" 

"Out into Starland," said Uncle Henry, spreading 
out his arms wide. "This room is the universe. This 
lamp w^ith the shade off is the sun. Imagine that the 
pictures on the walls are groups of stars, the con- 
stellations, the star-people we have been finding in 
the sky right along. Imagine that there are pictures 
on the ceiling, too, and on the floor. Lots of them, all 
over the six sides of this square room. 

"Xow Paul, you have a nice round head and have 
just had a hair-cut. Your head can be the earth. 
Just walk around the table once or twice until we 
get used to thinking about your head as the world. 
It seems rather small at first. That's right. Now 
you're going around the sun the way the earth does, 
from right to left, just opposite to the way the clock- 
hands go. You go once around the sun every year." 

"The earth of course spins on its axis, too, just 
like a top, while it is circling round the sun. It turns 
round completely every twenty-four hours, from 
West to East. Paul, see if you can spin like a top 
while you are going round the lamp. Spin from right 
to left, just opposite to the way the clock-hands go." 

Paul did his best to spin and walk at the same 
time, and Uncle Henry showed Peter and Betty that 
the side of Paul's head that was toward the lamp was 



80 



THE STAR PEOPLE 



always bright, while the other side was always in 
shadow. As Paul turned on his axis from right to 
left his face became lighted, then the right side of his 
head, then its back, then the left side, and so on, 
round and round. 

Part of the time Paul was facing a picture on one 
wall and the next minute his back was toward that 
picture and he was looking at another picture on the 
opposite wall, across the lamp. 

These two drawings show how Paul faced the two 
pictures one after the other. 




"Night on Pauls Face 



Day on Pauls Fac<? 



"Now tell me," commanded Uncle Henry, "which 
picture you see the plainest — is it the one you see 
when your back is to the lamp — or is it the one you 
see when you face the lamp, and look across it toward 
the picture on the wall beyond?" 

"The lamp is so bright without a shade that it 
blinds me when I try to see the picture beyond it," 
said Paul. 

"Oh, I see! I see!" said Betty, beginning to hop 
up and down. "Can I tell, Uncle Henry?" 



THIRD WINTER EVENING 81 

"Surely," laughed Uncle Henry, "what do you 



see? 



"When Paul faces the picture with his back to the 
lamp," said Betty, "it's night on his face, and day 
on the back of his head! Is that right?" 

"Yes, go on," encouraged Uncle Henry. 

"And so he can see that picture better, 'cause the 
lamplight isn't in his eyes. But when he faces the 
lamp and looks across it, then it's day in his face, 
and night on the back of his head, and he can't see 
the picture beyond the lamp very well, 'cause the 
sun-lamp shines in his eyes." 

"So that's why we can only see the stars at night!" 
said Peter. 

"Yes, that's why the moon and the stars come out 
only when it gets dark," said Uncle Henry. "You 
see the earth turns round and carries us to its dark 
side, the side that is away from the sun. We say 
'The sun has set.' Then when the sun glare is 
gone from our eyes we can see the sky-pictures, just 
as Paul sees one picture better with his back to the 
lamp than he does the other when he has to look 
through the lamp-light toward it." 

"And the stars are in the sky all day long, whether 
we see them or not?" asked Paul. 

"Certainly," said Uncle Henry. "If you could 
look up at the sky from the bottom of a very deep 
well, or a tall chimney, so that the sun-light was 
kept out of your eyes, you could see the stars shining 
in the daytime. There is a long deep tunnel in the 
great pyramid of Egypt that goes up and out from 



82 



THE STAR PEOPLE 



the centre of its base toward its north side at just the 
right angle so that the ancient Egyptians could 
always see the pole star through it — no matter 
whether it was night or daytime. You see the 
pole star never rises or sets, because it is always 
right over the end of the axis that the earth 
spins on." 

This picture shows how the tunnel in the great 
pyramid always pointed to the north star because 
the tunnel is always parallel to the axis the earth 
spins on. 




Pole Star 
Was Always Seen 
Tkrougn Tunnel / 
in Great fyramid / 
Because Direction/ 
of Tunnel Is / 
.Always Parallel/ 
to £artk s 
Axis 



When the pyramid was built, the star in the tip 
of the little bear's tail was not the pole star, as it is 
now. At that time the star that was nearest the pole 
was one of those in the dragon. Since the pole of the 
earth goes round in a complete circle among the 
stars every 25,000 years, the star in Draco will some 
time be the pole-star again — in, say 20,000 more 



years 



THIRD WINTER EVENING 83 

Peter had picked up the Almanac that Uncle 
Henry had borrowed from Katy and suddenly 
cried, 

"Oh, Uncle Henry, the Almanac has a lot of the 
Star People in it. It calls them 'The Signs of the 
Zodiac' What's the Zodiac, Uncle Hen?" 

"We are going to find out right away, Pete," said 
Uncle Henry, "but first we must draw pictures of the 
twelve star folks that are the Zodiac signs. That 
means three drawings apiece. Pull up your chairs to 
the table and we'll draw T on the sheets of scratch 
paper with Betty's colored pencils. Paul, you do the 
Virgo, Leo, and Cancer the Crab; Peter will draw 
Gemini the Twins, Taurus the Bull, and Aries the 
Ram; Betty will do the Fishes, called Pisces in Latin, 
Aquarius the Water Carrier, and Capricornus the 
Goat; while I will draw Sagittarius the Archer, 
Scorpio, and Libra the Balance. All old friends of 
ours." 

"We'll put the Almanac here in the middle of the 
table where we can all see it while we copy the 
'signs,' one on each sheet of paper." 

Everybody was very busy indeed for about half 
an hour. At the end of that time the twelve rough 
drawings were done and pinned up at equal distances 
apart around the walls of the playroom, three on 
each of the four walls. They were arranged around 
the room in the same order in which Uncle Henry 
had assigned them. The room then looked like this, 
though of course you see only three walls in a picture. 
You must imagine how the fourth wall looked. 



84 



THE STAR PEOPLE 




OEMINI 
the. 




^W 



TAORUS 
tHtBUU. 




PISCES 
the FlSHf S 




WBBHgHT 



» 



AQVARWS 

Water 
Carrier 



"Now Paul, suppose you walk around the table 
again, spinning on your own axis as you go, and we'll 
try to find out what the Zodiac is. You notice that 
the pictures are all pinned on the walls at the same 
height from the floor, which is just the height of the 
electric lamp bulb, and just the height of Paul's 
head too, no matter where he is in his walk around 
the lamp. The twelve constellations, or signs of the 
Zodiac are in the real sky also on the same level with 
the earth and the sun, no matter where the earth is 
in its journey round the sun. Astronomers say it this 
way : they say that the earth revolves around the sun 
'in the plane of the ecliptic' That simply means that 
if the sun was in the centre of an enormous horizon- 
tal pane of glass, the earth and all the signs of the 
Zodiac would also always be touching the pane of 
glass, which would then represent the 'plane of the 
ecliptic' Put an 1 in 'pane' and you have 'plane." 

"Is each sign for a month?" asked Peter. "I see 
there are twelve of them." 



THIRD WINTER EVENING 



85 



"That's correct," said Uncle Henry, "and you 
want to notice that as Paul walks round the lamp 
and looks across it at the signs on the wall beyond 
it, the lamp seems to Paul to move from one picture 
to the next." 

This picture is drawn as if the ceiling of the room 
was taken off and you could look down on Paul 
walking around the lamp. 




When it is January first, Paul, representing the 
earth, is in the position marked A, nearest to the 
picture of Gemini behind him, while the lamp, 
representing the sun, appears to him to be entering 
the sign of the Zodiac called Sagittarius, directly 
opposite across the room. Later, on April first, 



86 



THE STAR PEOPLE 



after three months, Paul, or the earth, has traveled 
a quarter of the way around the sun, has passed 
the pictures of Cancer and Leo on the wall be- 
hind him, and stands nearest Virgo in the posi- 
tion marked B. The lamp has also seemed to 
move through a quarter circle, has passed through 
the signs of Capricornus and Aquarius, and appears 
to Paul to be just entering the sign of Pisces, or the 
Fishes. In the same way the earth moves through a 
sign of the Zodiac every month and the sun, while 
really motionless, appears to also travel through a 
sign every month. Of course we cannot see the sign 
or constellation, where the sun appears to be, at the 




THIRD WINTER EVENING 87 

same time we see the sun, for his brightness makes 
the stars invisible, but if we could see the constella- 
tions by day, the sun would appear to travel from 
one sign of the Zodiac to the next every month." 

Here is a clock of the year which shows the earth 
at one end of the hand, the sun in the middle, and 
at the other end of the hand an arrow, which points 
to the sign of the Zodiac where the sun appears to be, 
and to the date when it seems to be there to an 
observer on the earth. Draw the hand with the 
earth-end in several different positions and you will 
see that the sun, if viewed from the earth, would 
appear to be in the sign of the Zodiac exactly oppo- 
site. 

When the children all understood the way the 
Zodiac divides the yearly path of the earth into 
twelve equal parts, Betty said, "I want to know why 
the geography globe at school always looks just as 
if it was going to tip over." 

Uncle Henry laughed. "If you think the geogra- 
phy globe looks unsteady because its axis of iron rod 
is on a slant, what will you think about the earth 
when I tell you that it spins around in just the same 
slanting position, with only an imaginary line for 
axis?" 

"Does it really?" asked Betty. 

"Yes," said Uncle Henry, "and it spins so steadily 
in that slanting position that the north end of its 
imaginary axis always points toward the same place, 
a point very close to the north star, or Polaris as it 
is called." 



88 THE STAR PEOPLE 

"Polaris is named for the North Pole, I suppose," 
said Peter. 

"That's right," Uncle Henry replied. "Let's get 
some scissors and we'll use our big sheet of card- 
board to make a cap for Paul's head that will show 
you just how the slant of the earth's axis makes it 
hotter in summer and colder in winter." 

"Ooh!" exclaimed Paul, "I always thought it was 
hot in summer because the earth got nearer to the 
sun then." 

"Lots of people think that, too," said Uncle Henry, 
"but it isn't so. The earth is really farther from the 
sun in summer." 

Betty ran for the scissors, and Uncle Henry cut 
out a big circle from the stiff cardboard. Then he 
cut out an opening in the centre of it that fitted 
Paul's head just as a stiff straw hat would that was 
a size too big for him. The circle of cardboard 
dropped down until it rested on Paul's ears and on 
the bridge of his nose. This cardboard brim repre- 
sented the "plane of the earth's equator," just as the 
pane of glass represented the "plane of the eclip- 
tic." Since the "plane of the equator" is always 
at right angles to the slanting axis of the earth, the 
"plane of the equator" is always at a slant to the 
"plane of the ecliptic." 

If you will run a long hat-pin through an orange, 
and sink the orange exactly to its middle in a glass 
bowl filled with water, holding the hat-pin at a slant, 
you will see that the equator of the orange is at a 
slant with the surface of the water. Half of the 



THIRD WINTER EVENING 



89 



orange's equator curves up above the water, while 
half of it curves down under the water's surface. 
If you fasten a cardboard ring around the orange 
at the equator the cardboard will then be at an 
angle with the surface of the water, which represents 
the "plane of the ecliptic." 

Uncle Henry cut two long strips from what was 
left of the cardboard and crossed the strips over the 
top of Paul's head, fastening the four ends of them 
to the round cardboard brim close to his head. 

After this Uncle Henry rolled a sheet of the scratch 
paper round a pencil, put rubber bands tightly 
around it, cut the end to bend up and make a foot 
and pinned the foot to the cardboard strips at the 
place where they crossed. When Paul had it all on he 
looked very funny 
with the pencil stick- 
ing straight up from 
the top of his head, 
and his eyes just 
peeping over the 
card board brim on 
each side of the 
strip down the mid- 
dle of his nose. 

"Now come on, 
Mr. Earth," said 
Uncle Henry, "It's time for you to spin round the 
lamp-sun for another year or two." 

So Paul held his head on a slant and kept it so that 
the pencil always pointed in the same direction as 




90 



THE STAR PEOPLE 



he went round the lamp. These four little pictures 
show how he looked at the four sides of the sun where 
the earth is in Winter, Spring, Summer, and Autumn. 



Autumn 



Winier 




Summer 



"Now," said Uncle Henry, "you see that if we 
make a black dot on one of the cardboard strips 
about halfway between the cardboard brim, or the 
earth's equator, and the pencil, or the North Pole, it 
will be about as far north as we are in the United 
States. And when Paul is in his Summer position, 
with the pencil slanting toward the 'sun,' you see 
that the sun's rays beat down much straighter on the 
black dot than they do when he is on the other side 
of the lamp, with the pole slanting away from the 
'sun.' That is why the Winter sun appears to be 
lower in the sky at noon than the Summer sun, and 
also why the Summer sun shines hotter on the earth 
than it does in Winter. Notice, too, that the rays 
from the lamp light up Paul's head for quite a little 



THIRD WINTER EVENING 91 

way beyond the foot of the 'pole' when it slants 
toward the 'sun,' while when it slants away from the 
'sun' the rays fail to reach the 'pole' at all. This 
means that in summer the sun shines a longer time 
upon the part of the earth that slants toward it. If 
you could look down from the ceiling at Paul's head 
in his Summer position and in his Winter one you 
would see why." 

Uncle Henry quickly drew these two pictures of 
the top of a globe to show the children why the days 
are long in Summer and short in Winter at any point 
in the United States. 




i o) 

SUN 




A T> 

The Winter Day The Summer Day 

lasts while the black dot on the lasts while the black dot on the 

earth travels from A to B — earth travels from C to D — 

less than half-way round. more than half-way round. 

"It's just like the hot water bottle mother kept in 
my bed that time I had a chill after swimming," 
said Paul. "The hotter it was before she put it in 
the bed the slower it cooled off." 

"That's the idea," said Uncle Henry, "the longer 
the sun shines on any place on the earth the hotter 



92 



THE STAR PEOPLE 



it gets, and when the nights are as short as they are 
in Summer the place hasn't long to cool off before 
it is round in the sun's hot rays again. Now do you 
see why Summer is hotter than Winter?" 

The children did. 

"There's one thing I don't understand, though," 
said Peter. "Why are there different stars in the 
sky in Winter than there are in Summer?" 

"That's easy to answer," said Uncle Henry. 
"Look at Paul again — first when it's 'night' on his 
face on the 'Summer' side of the lamp, and then 
when it is ' night ' on his face on the ' Winter ' side of 
the lamp. 

"At 'night' in Summer Paul looks at the pictures 
on one end of the room. The cardboard brim, or 
'plane of the equator,' is slanted up, above the 
'plane of the ecliptic.'" 

This picture shows how Paul looked. 



Double Li ne 
n ***t Level of 

Plane of tkeEcKpH 



'V Axi3 Poitvfcs 
\ toPoleS^ar 




THIRD WINTER EVENING 93 

"But in Winter, at 'night,' Paxil looks at quite 
different pictures, at the other end of the room. The 
cardboard brim is slanted down, below the level of 
the 'plane of the ecliptic' This is why the path of 
the Winter Signs crosses the sky higher up than 
the path of the Summer Signs. In both Winter and 
Summer you must imagine the cardboard brim to 
be as transparent as glass, for the 'plane of the 
equator' is in reality only imaginary." 

This next picture shows how Paul looked at the 
constellations at "night" in Winter. 

"Of course the north star and the stars for a 
considerable distance round the pole never set, and 
can be seen all night at any time of the year. It is 
only the ones that rise and set that go and come from 
our sight with the seasons. In reality they never 
leave us, for if it wasn't for the sunlight getting in 
our eyes by day, we could see the Summer night 
star-pictures in the Winter daytime, and the Winter 
night star people in the Summer daytime. We are 
just looking at opposite ends of our big room in the 
universe on Winter nights and Summer nights, that's 
all," said Uncle Henry. 

Uncle Henry took some folded papers from his 
pocket and spread them out on the table. 

"Here are four maps of the sky," he said, "which 
show the way it looks at different seasons at 9 o'clock 
in the evening — on January 1st, April 1st, July 1st, 
and October 1st. You will see that the groups of 
stars around the pole are always in view, while the 
rest of the star people change with the seasons, but 



94 



THE STAR PEOPLE 




THIRD WINTER EVENING 



95 



even the groups around the pole change their posi- 
tions with the seasons. 

"You have all seen the Swastika. It has been 
known and used as an ornament for hundreds of years, 
all over the world — by the American Indians, the 
Chinese, the East Indians, and many others. I'll show 
you where I think all these widely separated people got 
the Swastika, and how it stands for the four seasons." 

Uncle Henry drew four little pictures showing 
the four positions in which the big dipper stands in 
the four different seasons, with its "pointer stars 5 ' 
always indicating the pole star. 




At the right of the pole 
star in Winter. 



Above the pole star in 
Spring. 




At the left of the pole 
star in Summer. 



Below the pole star in 
Autumn. 



96 THE STAR PEOPLE 

Then he drew all four positions on one sheet of 
paper, like this : 




And when heavy lines were drawn along the 
handles of the dippers and across the pole star from 
bowl to bowl the Swastika suddenly appeared like 
this: 




The Society of Star-Gazers was very enthusiastic 
about the origin of the Swastika, and found the 
dipper in its different positions on all of the four maps 
that Uncle Henry had put on the table. 

You can see the position of the dipper and all the 
other stars at January 1st, April 1st, July 1st, and 
December 1st, at 9 o'clock in the evening, by looking 
at the four maps inside the covers of this book. 



THIRD WINTER EVENING 97 

After the children had looked at all the four 
maps as long as they wanted to, Uncle Henry 
suddenly remembered to look at his watch and 
exclaimed, 

"My goodness! I guess it's about time the 
Society adjourned for to-night. Ten o'clock! I'll 
get scolded for keeping you up so late." 

"I want to ask just one thing more," pleaded 
Betty. 

"All right, what is it?" said Uncle Henry. 

"Who found all the sky people?" 

"Well," said Uncle Henry, "now that's a long 
story. They were all found and named so long ago 
that nobody knows who did it. The inventors of the 
star people naturally thought they saw pictures in 
the sky of the things they were familar with in 
everyday life — the bear, the bull, the serpent, the 
archer, and so on. If they had had any steam 
engines then somebody would have drawn lines from 
star to star until they had a picture of one in the sky. 
In England the Great Bear or Dipper is usually 
called the 'Plough' and you can see why 




THE STAR PEOPLE 
"It is also called 'Charles' Wain' or wagon. 




"We only know that the constellations are very, 
very old, and that an ancient people living in the 
valley of the Euphrates river probably named most 
of them. The Babylonian Tablets, the oldest records 
known, show that the Zodiac constellations were 
known over 3000 years before the birth of Christ, 
which is now nearly 5000 years ago." 

"Can't we have just one more poem before we go 
to bed?" said Paul. 

"Yes," said Uncle Henry, "but not one of mine. 
I'll give you a little bit of a long poem that was 
written by a man named Aratos about 280 years 
before the wise men followed the star that told them 
where to find the new-born Christ. It has been 
running through my mind all the evening. This is it : 

"And all the signs through which Night whirls her car, 
From belted Orion back to Orion and his dauntless Hound, 
And all Poseidon's, all high Zeus"s stars, 
Bear on their beams true messages to man/' 



FOURTH WINTER EVENING 

IN WHICH THE " SOCIETY" MEETS THE LAST OF THE 

STAR PEOPLE AND THE BEGINNING OF ASTRONOMY 

AND BETTY PROPOSES A "NOTE" OF THANKS 

The Society of Star-Gazers assembled upon the 
roof the next night with an eagerness that was 
tempered a little by regret that it was the last. 

Uncle Henry saw this, and before starting to find 
the evening's constellations with the children, told 
them a few of the many wonderful things to be 
seen among the stars with the aid of a small tel- 
escope. 

He reminded them of the "little cloud" in Androm- 
eda, called the Great Nebula, and said that there 
were not only many more of these wonderful clouds 
of star dust, but numbers of beautiful double stars, 
some of them lovely with tints of red, green or 
orange, and some that can be seen with an ordinary 
opera-glass. 

Then he told them of the curious variable, or 
"winking" stars, which turn bright and faint 
alternately on a regular schedule, so many hours 
bright, and so many hours faint. Also he described 
the beauty of the planet Jupiter, surrounded by its 
four little moons, all of which could be seen with a 
small telescope. 

Then the children began to feel more cheerful, 

99 



100 THE STAR PEOPLE 

for they saw that being introduced to the creatures 
and people of Skyland was only the beginning of the 
study of astronomy. 

"So," finished Uncle Henry, "we don't need to 
feel that there is no more fun coming, for there are 
lots more faint constellations which are all beautiful, 
even though not plain enough for us to find easily 
in the beginning. Besides, if you ever journey to the 
South, beyond the earth's equator, you will find a 
whole new sky full of marvelous people, and crea- 
tures, and objects — all pictured in the flashing 
southern heavens." 

"Well," said Peter briskly, "what do we find 
to-night, Uncle Hen?" 

"We'll begin," replied Uncle Henry, "with a 
person you may have heard of — Perseus, who killed 
the terrible Gorgon Medusa'' 

"Oh, I know him," cried Paul, "we read all 
'bout him last year." 

"Quite right," said Uncle Henry, "then you 
remember that when he had killed Medusa, and cut 
off her head with his sword, he had to hold the head 
with the terrible face away from him, because every- 
body who looked at that face was instantly turned 
to stone." 

"Yes, yes, we know!" chorused the Society. 

"Well, now we'll find Perseus, his sword, and the 
head of Medusa," promised Uncle Henry. "All you 
have to do is to extend the line of Andromeda's left 
leg and prolong it from her foot, straight out for 
about her whole length. (30) There you will find 



FOURTH WINTER EVENING 101 

Algenib, the brightest star in Perseus. It is right in his 
neck, between his shoulders. From Algenib you can 
trace a row of stars downward, almost to the Pleiades 
in the bull's shoulder. This row of stars is Perseus' 
body and legs. Then find two stars above Algenib, 
one over the other, and you have his head and 
helmet. 

"After that it is easy to start at Algenib and trace 
out his right arm, with the sword. A line drawn 
toward Perseus through the stars in Andromeda s 
head and left hip points out the star Algol, which 
is the head of Medusa, held in Perseus' left hand. (31) 
Algol is a famous variable star, which the ancients 
named 'the dragon of the slowly winking eye." 

The children soon found all of Perseus, and all 
took part in drawing his skeleton on the blackboard. 
Then they watched Algol in the sky, and expected 
to see it wink, until Uncle Henry told them that the 
wink is so slow that it takes seven hours for Algol to 
become faint and bright again, and that then two 
and three-quarter days pass before Algol winks again. 
This being the case the Society decided not to wait, 
and finished Perseus up so that he looked this way: 

Uncle Henry added the lines with arrows to show 
how Algenib and Algol are found, with the help of 
Andromeda. 

"After Perseus was finished, Betty kept gazing 
at the sky. She seemed fascinated, and finally 
asked, 

"Uncle Henry, there's a perfectly lovely star just 
a little way in front of Perseus, and three little ones 



102 



THE STAR PEOPLE 




FOURTH WINTER EVENING 103 

near it. If I could name stars I would call them 'the 
hen and chickens,' wouldn't you?" 

All the children looked, and easily found the 
beautiful star. They couldn't have missed it, and 
neither can you, for it is one of the most brilliant 
in the sky and there are no others like it nearby. 

"Yes," said Uncle Henry, "the big star and the 
three little ones do look like a hen and her chickens. 
I would call them that, too, Betty, but hundreds of 
years ago somebody named the bright star Capella, 
which means 'the goat,' and called the three little 
stars 'the kids,' so you see that they are named 
already." 

"A kid is the baby of a goat, isn't it, Uncle Hen?" 
inquired Peter. 

"Yes, that's the idea," said Uncle Henry, and 
went on, "Betty happens to have picked out the 
brightest star in the last constellation we are going 
to find. It is called Auriga, or the Charioteer. He 
hasn't his chariot with him." 

"How T do we find Auriga?" inquired Paul. 

"He is very plain, almost as plain as Orion him- 
self," said Uncle Henry. "Capella is at one corner 
of a five-sided figure, called a 'pentagon.' (32) It is 
also in the left shoulder of Auriga. Find the tip of 
the left horn of Taurus, the Bull, and you will have 
another corner of the pentagon, and at the same 
time the right foot of Auriga. When you have 
those points it is easy to find the other three corners, 
which are the right shoulder, left foot, and the right 
hand of Auriga. He holds his whip in that hand. 



101 THE STAR PEOPLE 

Even though he had to leave his chariot when he 
went into the sky, he insisted on taking his whip 
along. It comes in very handy, too, sometimes, 
when the two lions up there become fretful and 
uneasy. When you have found Auriga s shoulder 
stars, just draw two lines upward to a star above and 
between them and you finish the charioteer's skele- 
ton. The star at the point where the lines cross is 
in his head. See him, evervbodv?" 

The children had no trouble in putting in the 
stars and drawing the skeleton. Neither will you, 
for Auriga is very conspicuous, and almost straight 
overhead in the evening about Christmas time. 

This is the way Auriga looked on the blackboard: 

When the children had finished looking at Auriga, 
and Capella the Goat and her three babies, Betty 
drew herself up very straight and said, trying to 
look very dignified, 

"Mr. Chairman, I move that The Society of Star- 
Gazers give Uncle Henry a note of thanks for giving 
us such an instructive, and — and — oh, we've liked 
your Christmas present an awful lot, Uncle Henry!" 

Peter was going to say that it was a vote of thanks 
that people got from societies, but Betty was so 
earnest and dignified that he didn't really want to 
take her down just then, so he joined Paul in second- 
ing the motion and was appointed by Betty as a 
committee of one to write the "note" and deliver 
it to Uncle Henry later. 

Uncle Henry looked quite serious, for him, and 
said that he had made up a little poem that they 



FOURTH WINTER EVENING 



105 




106 THE STAR PEOPLE 

might like to hear while standing under the Christ- 
mas stars. 

The Society voted unanimously in the affirmative, 
so Uncle Henry recited, 

"There was once a star of old, 
Wonders to three wise men told. 

Where it led, there followed they — 
Stars had taught them how to pray, 
How to know the Truth from lies — 
God had taught them through His skies. 

AYhere the star led, followed they, 
Found the Christ-child, laid in hay — 
To His mother, in the stable, 
Brought Him gifts that they were able. 

Stars lead us to Christmas Truth — 
Let us look, with eyes of youth !" 

Then, in a moment more, Uncle Henry and the 
children were gone, and the sleepless, faithful stars 
were alone, brooding lovingly over their tiny baby 
brother, which we call the great world. 



The author desires to express his indebtedness to the follow- 
ing books, which have given him many hours of enlightening 
pleasure while riding the star-gazing hobby: 

A Field Book of the Stars Olcott 

Star Lore of all Ages Olcott 

The Heavens and Their Story Mrs. Maunder 

Astronomy Jacoby 

Astronomy from a Dipper Clarke 

New Astronomy Todd 

Astronomy Lockyer 

He also wishes to add his appreciation of the monthly pleasure 
given by "The Evening Sky Map," published by Leon Barritt. 



Printed in the United States of America 



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